First Contact
by Shadythief
Summary: When the SSV Normandy becomes lost in space, they chance upon an undiscovered system. They find an unknown race, who use strange technology previously thought impossible. Could these aliens be the key to a far off future war? Or will they only cause more destruction?
1. Chapter 1

**Hey all! Welcome to the start of another story! Please be sure to review to let me know your thoughts, and fav/follow if you enjoy.**

 **Now, read on!**

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Chapter One: Discovery

" _Were it so easy…"_

Thel Vadam gazed up at the steadily rising sun of Sanghelios, this thoughts scattered. He usually awoke at this hour, as the head of his keep he needed to be up and ready for anything. But he had never taken the time to actually look at the massive red star that illuminated their world. That which gave them life, and could just as easily take it away.

The light of dawn broke the horizon, the keep of Vadam shining brightly like a gem. Built into a mountain, the keep of his namesake was among the most prized and envied on all of Sanghelios. He had fought for it more than once, Sangheili of lesser family's would send assassins. He had won every time, further adding to his name.

But recently, he was facing battles he could not win. The unified rulers of his people, the Covenant, were beginning to implement new rules. Families that had long ruled his people since the dawn of time were being supplanted. The lesser races such as the Jiralhanae were being promoted to more and more important tasks. It was a time of political chaos, and Thel feared for his family. This was a fight that needed words, not swords. And Thel had never been good with words.

"Were it so easy…" He rumbled aloud, eyes casting down to the courtyards below his chambers. The children were just beginning to arise, their morning lessons already underway. He chuckled as they began training with wooden swords, flailing and squeaking when struck.

All children of Sanghelios were warriors, it was tradition. But Thel took pride in raising others, while still teaching the arts of war. Farming, building, even medical studies. These were all important things, and Thel knew that. Even if most Sangheili did not…

He turned away, slowly moving back into his private quarters. The room had massive open windows, allowing the breeze from the mountains around them to carry right into his chambers. He pivots his head when he notices a faint purple flash at his desk. A communicator.

He her out a heavy breath. Already he could find no peace, and the day had barely started. He moved to his desk and retrieved the communicator, a holographic display lighting up with a message, written in the glyphs his people used for words. As he read, his eyes narrowed, breathing slightly increasing.

" **Fleet Master, you are needed in the war room in Bdaoro. Code Veron."**

He paused, the code words flashing in his mind. Veron was a phrase Sangheili military used for an unknown situation. It meant that higher command was needed to verify the issue at hand, and deal with it, one way or another. He only knew this because he had learnt it when he was a child. As far as he could remember, Veron had never been used in his life time. Perhaps even further back.

This was urgent. Very urgent.

Thel stormed out of his quarters, startling several Sangheili as he moved past them. He was known for a calm disposition, and he was sure that they'd seen the look on his face. He stopped by the armory, located near the heart of his keep.

"How can we assist you, most noble Kaiden?" One of the workers asked, bowing as he entered the chambers.

Thel nodded curtly, acknowledging his display. "I require my armor, and perhaps a weapon. And quickly."

"Your will be done." The worker said, bowing again and racing off to do his bidding.

He came back moments later with the armor. Bright gold in color, and decorated with various ornaments and glyphs, the armor of a fleet master was impressive indeed. All warriors aspired to one day wear this armor, a novelty that had not worn off on Thel. He pulled the pieces on as quickly as he could, finishing by sliding the helmet into place. The end result made him look much larger, and deadlier.

The worker hurried back with a large, purple rifle. Large pink crystals jutted out from its top, the barrel sleek and glowing from within. The Type-31 Needle Rifle was considered an older weapon by Sangheili standards, but Thel personally loved it. It fired just right for him, hitting its mark every time. He was also given a Plasma Pistol by the worker, which stuck nicely to his calf armor.

He thanked the workers before hurrying out, moving into the courtyards. Children cheered and waved as he walked by, the woman scolding them before acting just as childish. He waved to them all, thanking them for their kindness, before heading into the hanger area. Here, several Phantom ships as well as their drivers awaited.

"Kaiden, where do you need to be taken?" One asked, already stepping into the dropship.

"Bdaoro. And fast." He ordered, stepping inside. The interior was illuminated with purple lights, and was hollow. This allowed for more troops if needed, or a vehicle to fit inside. But it did mean he'd have to stand. Fleet master he might be, but he didn't dare try and take this pilots ship.

The pilot nodded, heading into the cockpit. "Your will be done, Kaiden."

He felt the familiar gut feeling as the ship ascended. Anti-Grav technology had been a staple of his people for hundreds of years, and was a part of both everyday life and the military. The ship was powered by such technology, effortlessly hovering into the air before beginning to accelerate.

Thel watched as the keep receded into the distance, standing by the side of the craft. The bulbous ship lacked sides, allowing for easy access. It also activated shields while in the air, to prevent anyone from falling out. He hung onto a rail above him though, just in case. The light of the sun was truly bright now, illuminating all below. The water of the large lakes glittered like jewels, and the sky bright orange of the dawn, not a cloud to be seen. It should have been a good day.

So why did this message make him feel nervous?

It didn't take long to reach the city, the spire like buildings reaching up like the tallest of trees. Below, citizens of all sorts began their day to day lives, busy moving from one point to another. Thel spotted the military complex on the outskirts, easily identifiable by the energy barriers that blocked it off from the rest of the metropolis.

The Phantom touched down, and Thel spotted a Sangheili of Minor rank waiting for him. He thanked the pilot before stepping off, the Minor rushing to greet him, blue armor reflecting the sun above.

"Fleet Master, it is an honor. I have been instructed to lead you to the war room."

"Then do not let me obstruct your duty." He replied, gesturing for the warrior to lead on. The Minor bowed his head, before turning on his heel and leading him through the complex.

Around them, Thel could see Soldiers preparing themselves. All Sangheili in the military were instructed to be ready for war at all times, as civil war was not unheard off. But the atmosphere was different today, Thel could see and feel it. The Warriors were moving hastily, more so than usual. Weapons were being loaded, Armor checked and checked again. And the Soldiers themselves seemed jumpy. Nervous.

Thel noted all of this, coughing to get the Minors attention. "Warrior, what has happened? Is it civil war?"

The Minor hesitated. "I have been instructed to remain silent unless asked by the Supreme Commander. I dare not break my vow."

"Of course." Thel assured him, cursing inside. The Supreme Commander reported directly to the Sangheili leaders, the Hierarchs. He was the only one Thel would have to take an order from, if one was presented. If _he_ was here in Bdaoro…then something was truly wrong.

He was lead into a massive circular building, its surface a dome. Inside, Sangheili was various ranks hurried about, all of them rushing. Thel's nerves were beginning to snap, but he maintained his pose. It was unlike a leader to show such rude behavior, however much he wanted too…

They reached a war room, in the heart of the complex. Thel immediately spotted several other Fleet Masters present, including his friend Rtas Vadum. And before them, was the Supreme Commander, Xytan Wattinree. His armor shone like chrome, lighting up his surroundings. It made Thel's own feel dull by comparison.

"Ah, Thel Vadam. Please, join us." Xytan ordered. Thel immediately stepped into the small gathering, those of lower ranks sticking to the outskirts of the room, not daring to come close.

"I hope this is not some kind of joke, Supreme Commander." Thel said with a small chuckle, but in his heart he knew it was anything but.

His friend, Rtas, shook his head. "I'm afraid not Thel, the situation is pretty dire."

Xytan silenced them with a wave of his hand. He spoke. "Now that you are all here, we can start…"

Xytan moved toward a small holographic table close by, the others gathering around it. Xytan turned to face them, his mandibles flexing with anxiety. "Several hours ago, our long range scanners detected a craft, not of Covenant origin."

The screen lit up. The display showed a ship the likes of which Thel had never seen before. It was sleek, long and thin at its front. Its rear ended with what looked like a pair of wings, some kind of engines attached. It also had fins on its rear. The whole picture made it appear like some kind of stealthy predator, utterly alien. It reminded Thel of the fierce winged hunters of his home, who snatched up pray without remorse. He shuddered.

"Though the craft is not of our design, its technology has been recognized." Xytan said, sighing heavily. "It was checked, and checked again. But it is still true…this craft is emitting vast gravitational fields, much more so than normal."

Thel felt a chill run up his spine. "But, those were a legend. Stories."

"We know they are not." Xytan said with a growl. "We all know the tale. The times of the Forerunners, and their greatest enemy. The Machines who bent gravity to their will, that rained death down upon their worlds. We know them, as the Reapers."

The war room filled with murmurs, which Thel did not take part in. The Reapers…the beings said to have destroyed the gods of Sanghelios, the Forerunners. Beings who uplifted his people, taught them how to read, write, create. It was said the Forerunners had chosen his people for a great purpose, a purpose that would now never be known. Legend or not, anything capable of destroying an intergalactic empire like theirs was to be feared.

"Do we know the size of the enemy vessel?" Rtas asked.

Xytan nodded grimly. "Indeed, the ship is estimated to be around 100m."

The room fell silent, before another Fleet Commander laughed. "That would mean the ship is tiny by our standards, Supreme Commander. Why not simply send out a Cruiser and destroy it?"

"Small it may be…" Xytan said slowly. "But we do not know its capabilities. It is bending gravity around it, for all we know it could be denser than it appears. Also, you have not taken into account what a ship that size is doing on its own. It could be a scout."

"Then we must neutralize it with all haste." Rtas said loudly. "I will command a cruiser out there immediately, just give the command."

But Xytan wasn't looking at Rtas, he was looking at Thel. "Vadam, you have not said a word. What say you in all of this?"

Thel paused, considering his words carefully. "I believe that this vessel is more than it seems. It has writing on the side of some sort, perhaps its appearance here is co-incidence. That said, it cannot be allowed to just fly closer without further investigating."

Xytan's mandibles flexed into a smile. "You have always been the most unorthodox with your tactics. You have won battles in way's others, even myself, wouldn't have thought of. I am giving you command of this mission. How will you proceed?"

Thel looked back at the display, the slowly rotating vessel as alien as before. "I will take a Corvette out there myself, with men I trust. I will see if this ship is hostile or not, and if the beings who crafted it can be reasoned with. If not…the destruction of my ship will alert you to their intentions."

The others began mumbling, but Xytan silenced them. "Risky, but I have faith in you Thel. Leave at once, I want this resolved as soon as possible. May the gods watch over you, brother."

"And you as well…Supreme Commander." Thel said, bowing. He turned and left immediately after, avoiding eye contact with any who stared. His mind raced as he thought of what needed to be done. Crew would be needed, warriors he knew well. Weapons, Ammo. He needed to be prepared for anything.

As he stepped outside, he looked up into the sky again, as if he could see his target from the ground he stood on. He rumbled in his chest.

" _Were it so easy…"_

* * *

 _A galactic hour earlier…_

"Joker, you're lost."

Joker, the pilot of the SSV-Normandy, shook his head vigorously. "Of course not Shepard! I'm just…getting my bearings. Yeah, that."

Jane Shepard rolled her eyes, lightly tapping the back of Jokers head. "Whatever, just get us back on course would you?"

"I'm trying!" Joker complained, gesturing to the multiple displays in front of his pilot's seat. "But something's constantly interfering with the sensors. I can't get a lock on the nearest Relay."

"Just…do something. I don't know, use your flying magic."

Joker raised a brow, snickering. "Roger that Commander, I'll just cast a spell shall I?"

Shepard shook her head, smirking. "You do that. I'm gonna go check up on the rest of the crew."

"That's cool. I'll just be here…alone."

Shepard walked off, leaving the now alone Joker to talk to himself. The guy may have been an oddball, but he was the best damn pilot the Alliance Navy had. Shepard wouldn't want anyone else flying _her_ ship.

She moved down the main walkway, saying brief hello's and saluting to the Navy personal responsible for keeping the ship from crashing. Joker may have been the pilot, but there was a lot he couldn't do on his own. Weapon systems, radar, stealth fields. The Mass Effect generator. The Normandy was a small ship, and so needed a smaller crew, but that still meant dozens of Alliance personal.

But Shepard wasn't too interested in stopping to chat to them. Because the Normandy had picked up some…interesting crew members recently. The inclusion of Aliens on the team had more than a few of the crew on edge, but Shepard was loving it. The new crew members came from all backgrounds. Mercenaries, C-Sec and even a Doctor.

In fact, that was who Shepard planned on talking to next. She descended the small stairway near the back of the ship, moving down to the crew quarters. This floor was more cramped, wedged between the CIC above, and the Hanger below. But it was cozy, and Shepard preferred it that way. She couldn't imagine the Normandy being any bigger…or having something ridiculous like leather seats.

She walked into the Medical office, the Doctor's room through the doorway on the other side. She opened the door, knocking lightly afterward.

"Oh, Shepard! You scared me…" Dr. Liara T'soni said, jumping. She dropped several papers she'd been holdings, immediately bending down to pick them up. Shepard chuckled and helped her, kneeling down and grabbing the last few pages.

"I thought you would be used to that by now." She commented, handing the pages over to the woman.

"Well, I guess you could say I haven't gotten used to you yet." Liara replied. "You are human after all. I'm still getting to know your customs…"

Shepard grinned. Liara had a human like face, and shape, but that where the similarities ended. Her Species, the Asari, were an all-female race of high intelligence. Their skin was colored blue of varying shades, and also looked rougher than human skin, appearing slightly more course. Asari lacked hair as well, instead having hard crests on their heads. They were regarded as some of the most beautiful people out there, and Shepard was inclined to agree. If she swung that way, she'd definitely want to get to know the Doctor more…

"It's called knocking, not that hard to get." Shepard chuckled, looking down at the papers. "What are these anyway?"

"Just documents about my archeological digs." Liara said, looking down at them briefly. "Would you like to read through them? I find them very interesting."

"I'm sure they are, but I only stopped by to check on you." Shepard said with a sheepish grin. "Wanted to make sure you hadn't walked into the men's rest room again."

Liara's cheeks turned a dark shade of blue. "I told you it was an accident…"

Shepard laughed. "I'm just kidding. I'll leave you in peace now, come find me if you need anything."

Liara nodded, smiling as Shepard left. She nearly bumped into another person on her way out, earning a startled grunt in her ear.

"Uhh, sorry commander. Guess your red hair isn't as easy to spot as I thought." Kaiden Alenko muttered, rubbing his nose.

"Oh shit, sorry. You ok?" Shepard asked. Kaiden nodded, putting on a smile.

"Oh I'm fine. The most action I've seen since Eden Prime." He chuckled. "How's things up top? I've been reading, haven't kept up to date."

"Jokers lost…again." Shepard said.

Kaiden frowned. "Hmm, maybe I can help…I'll catch you later Shepard."

"Later Alenko."

Kaiden hurried off, running up the stairs. Shepard shook her head as she strolled into the lift, located in the middle of the crew quarters. The lift went down into the hanger, where the rest of the crew she wanted to see spent most of their time. As the lift door opened, she was greeted by another human face, though one she was far less fond off.

"Oh, Commander." Ashley Williams said curtly.

Shepard nodded. "What are you doing down here, Chief?"

"Just…talking to the crew." She said, avoiding eye contact. She stepped into the elevator and pressed the up button, leaving without another word. Shepard grimaced. Out of all the crew, Ashley was the most…Xenophobic. She wondered exactly what the 'talking' entailed.

"She was asking how I'm so handsome, in case you were wondering Commander."

A smile instantly cracked on her lips, as she turned to face the voices owner. "The only thing you're handsome too Vakarian is a Krogan."

Garrus Vakarian, a Turian, chuckled. He clutched at his chest, as if injured. "Oh, you wound me Shepard. How will I live on?"

"I'm sure you'll find a way." She said with a grin, walking over to him.

Garrus's species were far more alien than Liara's were. Tall and thin, he resembled something akin to a bird. His skin was mildly metallic, covered in plates and crests. His head ended in a sort of beak, two flat mandibles covering the sides. All in all, not something Shepard thought of as attractive, though Garrus was an exception. They'd been firing off jokes at each other since he came aboard, instant friends.

"So what brings the great Commander down here? Why have I, a lowly worker, been so privileged?" He said, flexing two of his three digits in the air sarcastically. Shepard found it hilarious when the aliens tried to imitate human expressions, though Garrus pulled it off rather well. At least, compared to Liara.

"Nothing, I can't check on a friend?"

Garrus did a double take. "When did we become friends? I don't remember signing that on the contract."

Shepard shook her head, laughing. "You're a goof, you know that?"

"True, but you love it." He shot back, smirking.

"Nah, remember? A face only a Krogan could love."

"Speak for yourself…" A voice from the other side of the hanger rumbled. "I ain't kissing him."

Shepard turned to face it's owner, who was working at a weapons bench. "Wrex, didn't anyone tell you not to listen into others conversations?"

Urdnot Wrex turned his massive body around, lips peeling back into a grin. "Sorry, that isn't something taught on Tuchanka. Besides, its not my fault. You two aren't exactly quiet over there."

"How do you even hear Wrex? I can't seem to find your ear holes." Garrus commented, tilting his head. "No matter how many times I peek."

Wrex's people, the Krogan, looked as if they came from Earth during the time of the Dinosaurs. Large, scaly and with reptile like eyes and mouths, they looked like giant lizards, minus the tail. Big and Bulky, the Krogan were the largest species in Council accepted space. They were prized as fighters, due to being highly resilient in combat. This however, was due to a horrible past. One Shepard had felt nothing but horror at hearing…

Wrex grumbled. "Watch it Vakarian, don't make me remind you that I beat you in an arm wrestle…about five times now."

"True, though in my defense…you do have big arms." Garrus said, looking down at Shepard. "I bet I could beat the Commander."

Shepard smirked. "Sorry, I'd probably kick your ass too."

"Joker would kick your ass, and he's got brittle bones." Wrex said, his body shaking with quiet laughter before turning back to his bench.

"What you working on?" Shepard called out. Wrex grumbled something and kept working, ignoring her.

"You know Krogan, it's never big enough." Garrus commented. "So anyway Shepard, can I help you with something? Is it finally time for us to commandeer the Normandy?"

"I can't commandeer my own ship you idiot."

"Sure you could, though you would have to use an alias."

"Why the heck would I do that?"

"To steal your own ship. Come on Shepard, keep up." Garrus said, lightly flicking her hair with a clawed finger.

Shepard rolled her eyes. "Ok, you're getting too weird for me…again. Is Tali in her usual place?"

"Of course, that girl never leaves the engine room." Garrus said. "If you go in, could you tell her I have some Dextro drinks that we can share. I'd ask you, but, you might die."

"Gee thanks." Shepard said. "I'll pass it along."

Shepard left as Garrus called out something to Wrex, which earned him another loud growl. She walked across the hanger toward a small doorway which led into the back of the ship. Inside, the space was cramped, more so than anywhere else. A few Human technicians were down here, but they weren't who Shepard had come for.

"Hey Tali, you down here?" She called out. Her answer was a curse followed by a thud.

"Shepard!" Tali called out, appearing from around a bend. She dusted herself off. "Its good to see you. What brings you down to the engines?"

"What? I can't say hey?" Shepard asked, looking the girl up and down.

The Quarians were a bit of a mystery, even to other aliens. They wore full body suits their whole lives, never removing them when away from home. They're immune systems were vastly weaker, which meant the suits saved their lives. They didn't live on a home world, rather a home fleet. The Migrant Fleet was the largest known in the galaxy, and yet is was mostly life ships, not weapons of war. What a Quarian looked like under the suit was a mystery…

"Of course, though I don't imagine you stopped by just to see me." Tali said, her voice slightly filtered by the helmet she wore, which had a large reflective visor. "Did you want an update on the Mass Effect Core?"

"Nah, I was just checking up. Though Joker's currently lost. Have any ideas for that?"

"What's wrong exactly?" Tali asked, hand on her hip.

"He says the scanner is jamming up or something." Shepard tried, tech talk not her strong suit.

"Hmm…" Tali pondered. "He could redirect all non-essential power to the scanner, give it a boost. It's not like the rest rooms are needed anyway. You can just go in your suits."

"Yeah uhh, we can't do that." Shepard told her.

"You can't? Wow, Humans are weird…"

Shepard laughed, before remembering Garrus's request. "Oh yeah, Garrus wanted me to tell you-"

The ship suddenly lurched, causing her to lose her balance. She quickly readjusted, catching a falling Tali before the Quarian hit the ground. The lights flickered, turning off for a second before coming back on. The engine began making a lot of noise.

Shepard swore. "Great, now what is he up to?"

The comms came on as if to answer her, an uneasy Joker talking. "Uhh, Commander? I think you want to see this…"

Shepard sighed. "I have to go, see you Tali."

"Of course Commander, good luck."

Shepard stormed back through the hanger, up the lift. She began moving up the stairs, patching her Omni-Tool to the bridge. "Joker, you had better start explaining."

He answered immediately, any humor in his voice gone. "Ma'am, I made a light jump after you left. I thought I'd detected the relay. But we found…something else."

"What?" Shepard asked impatiently. But Joker went silent again, earning another curse from her.

She made it to the command floor, walking swiftly through the CIC toward the bridge. The crew was in a flurry, voices and commands being fired off rapidly. Kaiden came running out of the Cockpit, meeting her half way. He looked white as a ghost. "Commander, it's…"

But Shepard wanted to see already. She walked right past him, bursting into Jokers area. Joker turned in his chair, also quite pale. He didn't say a word, simply pointed out of the viewing screen in front of them. Shepard peered out, eyes narrowed. At first, she didn't know what she was meant to be seeing. It just looked as if they were in a nebula of some kind. Purple in color, and very solid.

But then, the Purple shape moved, and Shepard finally understood. Her mouth fell open, and she took an involuntary step back. That size, it couldn't be. It was impossible by all known laws of physics…

And yet, it was there, right in front of them. A massive ship, easily dwarfing their own. Worst of all, the ship wasn't like any she'd seen before. It was sleek, purple colored. An odd shape, almost like an oval. She couldn't make sense of it.

"Commander…what do we do?" Joker asked, all eyes turning to her.

She took a deep breath. "Joker, alert the crew. Prepare for battle."


	2. Chapter 2

**Hey all! Thank you all for your wonderful reviews, I never expected such an amazing response. Glad to see that many of you are eager to read more! anyway, I'll just reply to a few questions, and then we'll jump right in.**

 **Someoneorsomething: You are entirely correct when it comes to the raw differences between the two franchises and their ships. I'm very well aware of that, and have several work arounds so the Elites do not just steam roll everything. That said, I will be forced to 'nerf' them slightly.**

 **CBD: I know the length of a Corvette, I made sure to do my research. I'd think Shepards response is due to the nature of the ship, not just the size alone. Though, something the size of a dreadnought is still a panic moment. Imagine when they see a carrier, or bigger.**

 **Eipok: I do apologise for any spelling or grammar mistakes. I wrote this quite late at night, and was half asleep. I'm usually more thorough. Again, sorry.**

 **GrandMaster of Fiction: Afraid not, the story will not have any UNSC. It will mostly focus on the Elites and how they'd fit into the ME universe.**

 **Ok ok enough with all that, read on!**

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Chapter Two

The crew of the Normandy was alive with activity, status reports and checks being fired off every second. The buzz in the air was one of panic, as the people of the Alliance came face to face with an unknown craft. She could hear people talking frantically behind her, some cursing, and even more uttering prayers.

But the more Shepard stared at the large ship, the stranger the situation felt to her. The ships design was entirely alien, and she couldn't make heads or tails of it. Where was its propulsion? Or weapons? She couldn't identify anything of the sort. It didn't seem functional at all, at least by Alliance standards. But she'd learnt long ago never to underestimate an opponent, no matter how strange looking.

"Joker, what can you tell me about it?" She asked the pilot. Joker didn't hear her, still rapidly tapping away. She tried again, but his mind was somewhere else. It was like he was in a trance.

"Joker!" She said, louder. He snapped out of it, looking up at her hastily.

"Sorry Commander! Uhh, the ship is about nine hundred and fifty meters according to scans. That puts it at Dreadnaught size."

She frowned. That would put it within the limits of conventional FTL rules. The requirements for a ship any larger would be too much, the energy needed to power a Mass Effect field that size would be impossible to generate, without making the ship even bigger. But that still didn't explain its sudden appearance, they would have picked up its warp before it arrived.

"Tell me more Joker." She ordered.

He nodded. "Just before it showed up, we picked up some very high radiation levels. And I mean high."

She didn't understand how that was relevant, but she nodded and waited for him to continue. He pulled up a status screen, details of the ships scans. Her eyes flicked down the list, feeling a pit in her gut as she got further down. This thing was emitting _a lot_ of energy. If it was electric based or otherwise, she didn't know, but it had to be consuming a lot of the power, otherwise why generate it at all?

She also realized something else very quickly. If this thing had weapons, it could have knocked them out of the sky with no effort. And yet it just floated there in front of them, like a purple shark in space. Which brought up another thought.

What if they weren't hostile?

The First Contact protocol was something she was expected to know, as a recently appointed Specter. When a new species was discovered, it was part of her duty to extend the hand of friendship. It was up to the aliens to reply in kind. However, the Rule had never accounted for if the species had ships this size, or if the Council team was highly outnumbered. A ship that size had to be crewed by hundreds, or operated by some pretty intelligent computers.

"I've got weapon solutions coming in, we can fire on your command." Joker said, before taking a breath. "Though we might just piss that thing off."

"No, hold fire." Shepard ordered, thinking. They could try and escape. The Normandy had the latest in stealth tech, they could try and lose the ship. But she had no way of knowing what kind of sensors that ship used, or even if the Normandy could fool them.

She made a snap decision. "Joker, open the comms."

"What? Are you crazy? They might not know we're here, you'll alert them!"

"Do it Joker, that's an order." Shepard said, staring him down. She had a gut feeling, and she had learnt to always go with her gut, for better or worse.

She leaned over the pilot to speak into the mic, her voice carrying out over all channels. Hopefully, they could hear her. Otherwise, they might just perceive it as some kind of attack, and retaliate. It was a risk, but one that Shepard had to take.

"This is Commander Shepard of the Alliance Navy, we are not hostile. I repeat, we are not hostile."

She pulled back, and waited. The next few seconds were tense, as the whole crew awaited a response. Shepard stared up at the ship, wide eyed. She was secretly praying that this would work, even if they couldn't understand each other…

The ship suddenly began moving. It turned to face them, it's 'front' pointing directly toward them. In Alliance Navy terms, that was a sign it was preparing to attack. Making its profile smaller as to avoid being hit. A sign of aggression. Shepard wasn't sure if these beings followed the same idea, but she wasn't going to risk it.

"Joker, random jump now!"

"Aye commander." He said, immediately typing in the commands. The Normandy's view screen flashed as they hit light speed. The ship barely shuddered as they raced through space, coming to a stop seconds later.

"Think we lost them?" Joker asked.

"No, I don't." Shepard said grimly. She spotted an asteroid belt close by. "Move us there, power down the ship."

Joker nodded, doing as he was asked. They flew into the belt, Joker expertly weaving through the massive rocks around them. He came to a stop within the shadow of one such rock, the sounds of the ship powering down around them following. The emergency lights flickered on, and the air startled becoming stale as the flow stopped recycling.

Shepard stared out of the viewing port. The screen was filled with nothing but the black of space. Maybe, they had lost the ship. Perhaps she'd over estimated their capabilities. Regardless, she'd remain here for a while, just to be sure. Then her priority would be to head back to Council space, alert them to this potential threat.

A monitor began beeping in the cockpit. Joker flicked the warning onto his screen, only taking a second to read it. "Uh oh…huge radiation spike detected."

Sure enough, the ship appeared. But this time Shepard saw exactly how. Some kind of hole suddenly appeared, a literal tear in space. The ship emerged from inside, slowly moving out into open space and coming to a stop just at the edge of the asteroid field.

"Was that a wormhole?" Joker asked, incredulous. "That's impossible, no, that's physics breaking."

"Apparently not." Shepard muttered, thinking. "Get Tali up here."

They tensely waited in the cockpit for the Quarian to arrive. Shepard continued to study the ship, but the more she looked at it, the less sense it made. It was almost as if it was using a different set of physical rules to them. The ship didn't moved, just remaining at the edge of the belt. Joker was picking up more strange readings, pulses which beamed out in a very precise order. Scans, the aliens were scanning for them. But it seemed Shepard's plan was working, they couldn't find them in the field.

She heard loud foot fall behind her, and turned to find Tali had joined them. She gasped, looking at the ship through the viewing screen. Shepard tapped her shoulder to get her attention, offering a weak smile.

"Tali, this ship appeared out of a wormhole. Is that possible?" She asked the Quarian, hoping her smarts would come in handy. Quarians were arguably among the best engineers in the galaxy, and Tali was even better. If anyone could understand it, it was her.

"It's…theoretically possible." She said. "We theorized that it could be achieved if enough energy was used, but we could never build a machine small enough to do it. It was a never ending loop."

"But it's possible?"

"If they just used one, then yes. I'd believe so."

"Sarcasm is not helping Tali…" Shepard muttered, eyes back on the ship. She squinted as she saw movement near the ship.

"Joker, look."

All eyes turned to the meteor Shepard had seen. It had been shoved out of the belt, and was now spiraling toward the alien vessel. The rock was the size of the Normandy at least, nothing to laugh about. If they didn't move, it could inflict serious damage. But the ship remained, staying right on the collision course.

The rock hit the ship's hull, or so Shepard had thought. There was a big explosion, lighting up the side of the ship. The rock fractured into dust, beyond a million pieces. But incredibly, the ship was in one piece. Unharmed. Shepard swore she saw a shimmer around the impact site before it vanished.

Apparently, Tali had seen the same thing. "I cannot believe it. They have energy shields!"

"You sure that wasn't just a powerful kinetic barrier?" Shepard asked. Energy shields were possible, but again cost too much to power effectively. Kinetic barriers were much more energy efficient, and did practically the same job of blocking solid projectiles.

"No, notice how the meteor vanished? The shield did that, were it kinetic it would have just been pushed aside."

"That seems…inefficient." Joker pointed out. "How the hell does this thing stay powered?"

"I don't know, but we are not engaging. Stay in the field and wait them out." Shepard ordered. "Once it leaves, we head back to Council space. No detours, they need to know about this."

The next few minutes passed by tensely, all eyes on the alien ship. The ship made no further movements however, and continued to wait beside the belt. It was almost as if it knew they were in there, and was waiting for them to come out. Another thought entered her mind, one that made her shudder. What if they not only knew, but were doing something about it behind their backs…

A warning siren blared, the screens turning red and flashing proximity alerts. "Joker, what is it? Do we have a rock coming our way?"

Joker's complexion paled. "No Ma'am. That was a security breach, down in the hanger. Unknown hostiles have cut an opening into the ship."

"What?"

Joker swallowed. "They're inside."

* * *

"How did they get so close…" Shepard thought aloud, visibly confused. It had to be a smaller craft, but they hadn't seen the ship launch any such thing. Had it been cloaked? With aliens who could teleport and use energy shields, anything was possible at this point.

The comms came to life, a very out of breathe Garrus talking urgently. "Shepard, get down here. We're holding them off…barely. Wrex, cover that opening."

"On it." Wrex grunted, the sound of his shotgun blasting in the background. "Dammit!"

"We're on our way, hold on guys." Shepard said quickly, already storming back down the bridge toward the lift. "Kaiden, you on here too? Get to the hanger."

"Heading there now Shepard." He responded, his footsteps thudding loudly in the background.

Shepard barged past people as she ran for the next floor. Crew members who weren't even fully aware of the situation yet, but knew that something was truly wrong. Shepard couldn't keep the grimace off her face, no matter how hard she tried.

She raced down the stairs, making eye contact with Kaiden as they reached the lift together. He held his Pistol, standard for Alliance personal. Shepard preferred a more…direct approach, as she cocked her shot gun. As a Biotic of the Vanguard practice, she was more than capable of dishing out huge amounts of damage at close range. She just hoped that they weren't too late.

The lift doors opened and they ran in, only to discover that Garrus was downed. He was sprawled on the floor, eyes closed. Wrex stood over him, his massive Claymore Shotgun in hand. His eyes were darting around frantically, as if having trouble spotting the enemy.

Then Shepard noticed the hold in the wall of the hanger. It was molten hot, which meant it had probably been cut with some kind of Plasma weaponry. Which was bad, as their kinetic barriers couldn't block plasma based attacks. She also noticed a lack of enemies. Had Wrex scared them away? No, that couldn't be it, so what…

"Shepard, watch yourself." Wrex grumbled, eyes still searching. "The damn things are invisible."

"They can turn invisible now?" Kaiden asked, stunned.

Shepard shook her head, refusing to be overwhelmed by the situation. "Wrex, what can you tell me about them?"

"I didn't get a good look, but it was big Shepard. Very big." Wrex said. "I'd say about nine feet tall. It shot at Garrus, taking him out before vanishing. I think it's still here…"

She swore. Nine feet was indeed big, bigger than Wrex himself. If they were as strong as they were tall, then they could have a serious problem. Shepard also noticed scorch marks along the ground, places the alien weaponry had hit. From the looks of it, they used energy weapons similar to what must have cut the hole in the wall. Her eyes flicked back to Garrus.

"Is Garrus ok?" She asked, kneeling down to check on the Turian. His armor was slightly scorched, but he was breathing. That's what mattered most.

"Yeah, though I don't know if he's gonna stay that way. Turian's are tough, but not that tough." Wrex said, suddenly tilting his head. He turned sharply. "Shepard watch out! Behind you!"

She heard the heavy foot falls, but didn't have the speed to turn. Something strong knocked her off her feet, grabbing her and throwing her toward a large crate. She hit the crate hard, hissing in pain. Her attacker was right behind her, large hand grabbing her throat. She gasped, hoisted off her feet and pressed against the container.

At first, all she could see was a shimmer, but then the camouflage vanished, exposing the creature. Shepard's eyes went wide at the grisly sight. Like Wrex had said, it was huge. Not just tall, but clearly muscular. Its golden armor shone in the light, alien glyphs glowing on the chest piece. Its face was the most eye catching sight, lacking a conventional jaw. Instead, four mandibles flexed into a roar, Shepard able to see directly down its gullet. She shuddered.

It shifted slightly, bringing an arm up. It held a small handle like object, which suddenly lit up. Within a second, two blades erupted from the handle, made entirely of plasma. This Plasma Sword sizzled the very air around it, and Shepard quickly realized what the Alien was intending. She tilted her head to the side, narrowly avoiding being decapitated. The sword stabbed into the metal crate behind them with ease, instantly melting through layers of armor.

But this was Shepard's moment to counter attack, and she wasn't going to waste it. With an all mighty yell, she pooled biotic energy into her fist, punching into the aliens face. It growled with surprise, losing its grip on her. She sent out a ripple, making the alien let go fully. She rolled to safety, but it was right behind her, that sword glowing menacingly.

Shepard tried her best to look intimidating, though compared to her foe she must have been laughably small. None the less, the alien was watching her, head slightly tilted. She got the feeling it was studying her, which didn't make her any more comfortable.

The alien began running at her, long legs covering the distance between them within a second. She gasped as she narrowly ducked a swipe from its sword, the air just above her scalp sizzling from the plasma. She fired her shotgun point blank, but the creatures shield absorbed the shot, shimmering. She fired another biotic blast, pushing the alien back. It snarled, preparing for another lunge.

Another sudden roar shocked them both. A blur of red crashed into the alien, knocking it off its feet. It let out a noise of surprise, skidding to a stop before getting to its feet, cat like eyes on its new attacker. Wrex bared his teeth, flexing. "I've got this one Shepard. Go help Alenko."

He charged, but the Alien stood its ground. In fact, it holstered its sword, the blades fading. When Wrex made contact, the alien went in for a grab, stopping the charging Krogan after a few feet of skidding. It growled, attempting to _lift_ Wrex, who let out a cry of surprise when his feet left the ground. Wrex thought quickly though, and landed a head butt into the aliens face. They both toppled to the ground, getting up quickly for round two.

Shepard stopped watching, eyes now on Kaiden. He was holding his own against two of the attackers. Kaiden was an accomplished biotic, even more so than she was. He was holding them off with his powers, blue balls of energy hounding the aliens. But Shepard saw shields ripple, absorbing most of the attacks. The aliens kept coming, holding strange rifles that fired blue bolts of plasma. Kaiden had made a barrier around himself, his shield blocking the attacks. But she could see him panting, tiring. Biotics was hard to maintain, and even the likes of Kaiden would eventually slip.

Shepard felt her own powers activate. With a growl she charged, energy rippling around her. She closed the distance in the blink of an eye, slamming into one of the aliens. It let out a roar, clutching at its arm. Shepard wasn't done however, as she brought up her shotgun and fired. The aliens shield rippled, before spluttering out. It realized this and ran, taking huge strides. It ducked behind a crate, Shepard right on its tail. But when she rounded the corner, it was gone.

" _Damn, must have cloaked…"_

A cry of pain caught her attention. The third alien was on Kaiden, holding both of his wrists in one hand, and pulling him out to its eye level. It peered at him, expression impossible to guess. Kaiden was doing the best he could to stare right back, breathing heavily.

A loud bang echoed through the hanger, and the aliens shield rippled. It dropped Kaiden, looking around for where the shot came from. A second shot rang out, which caused the alien to roar in challenge, frantically searching for the shooter. Shepard heard a very familiar chuckle from close by.

"That…will show him. Sneak up on me…" A very out of it Garrus muttered, aiming a Sniper Rifle in one hand. He fired again, this time popping the creatures shield. The alien ran after that, covering great distance before its cloaking made it disappear.

"Garrus!" Shepard called out, racing over to him. "You alright buddy?"

"Been better, honestly…" He breathed. "Shepard, these things are tough. Those shields regenerate."

As if to reiterate his point, both aliens appeared a short distance away, blue energy shields rippling brightly. She looked over at Wrex, but he was still busy locked in hand to hand combat with the gold alien. She couldn't tell who was winning, as both seemed to be giving it their all. Wrex was growling like an animal, throwing powerful punches and shoves. But the gold alien was just as strong, blocking or dodging Wrex's every move. It bent low, sweeping out the Krogan's legs out from under him. Wrex caught the alien as it attempted to pounce on him, throwing it aside with a grunt of effort.

The two other aliens, colored red and appearing less extravagant than the gold one, both pulled out additional weapons, equally as strange. One was holding a purple rifle like weapon, whose barrel glowed an ominous green. The other was wielding some kind of fat pistol, with pink crystals sticking out from its top. Both looked lethal.

"Don't worry Commander." A voice said over the comms. Shepard quickly realized it belonged to Ashley. The sound of the lift doors opening alerted her. She turned around, only to be greeted by a glorious sight indeed.

Ash smiled, her rifle at the ready. "We have your back Ma'am."

And more of the Normandy's crew ran out, crying out battle cries and opening fire on the unknown targets. The two aliens ran forward, vanishing into their air. The Alliance personal began muttering in confusion, weapons pointing in random directions.

"Heads up, they can cloak!" Shepard warned, but a shimmer amongst them told her it was too late.

One of the soldiers suddenly yelled, appearing to hover in the air before being flung across the hanger, crashing into the floor. Another just dropped, something heavy hitting him from behind. The soldiers began shooting at nothing, panicking. More and more began to fall, the two aliens using their stealth to their advantage. Shepard kept catching the shimmer, but while they were surrounded by her men, she couldn't get a clear shot.

Ash however, must have had a better line of sight. She fired a short burst from her rifle, an energy shield flickering. The alien appeared moments later, slowly turning to Ash with a crew member in its hand. It growled, dropping the man before stalking toward her. She kept a continuous stream of fire, but the shots just hit the shield. The alien walked right toward her, unharmed, before knocking the rifle out of her hands. She immediately went for her pistol, but the alien landed a kick, large hoof like foot knocking Ash off her feet. She hit the ground, struggling to rise. The alien planted a foot on her, peering down at its victim.

" _Oh hell no."_

Shepard biotic charged, crashing into the aliens back. It gurgled in surprise, trying to turn and face her. But she held on, one hand gripping at handholds on its rear armor. With the other, she fired her shotgun into the shield. The last one popped the barrier, purple blood splattering the ground. The alien groaned, a large hand grabbing Shepard and pulling her off with ease. She was flung down beside Ash, who was clearly in pain.

"Commander…" She tried to say, before unconsciousness claimed her.

Shepard growled, getting to her feet. The alien was clutching at its side, purple blood dripping. An acrid smell like tar reached her nose, making her cringe. Grunting, she wobbly got to her feet, keeping eye contact with the alien. It tried to cloak, but re-appeared shortly after. Shepard didn't know if the device had failed, or it was because it was injured, she didn't care. All she cared about was ensuring it couldn't hurt her friends anymore.

She marched toward the giant being. It went for a punch, but Shepard ducked, tackling it. It toppled over, letting out a hiss. She straddled it, cocking her shot gun and aiming it right at the aliens head.

"Sorry about this, but it's me or you." She said, as if it would understand her. Incredibly, the alien was looking her directly in the eye, unafraid. She found that unnerving, but it didn't deter her. She began to pull the trigger…

A loud roar jarred her, making her stop. It had sounded more like a yell, perhaps something in their native tongue. Shepard looked up, eyes soaking in the scene. The gold alien was looking directly at her, Wrex at its feet. He was struggling to rise, but the alien planted a foot on his hump, pinning him down. Behind them, two more aliens appeared out of cloak, aiming those purple rifles at the crew.

The gold alien didn't break its stare. It did however pull its sword hilt out, the blades coming to life at its touch. It lowered the sword dangerously close to Wrex's back, coming to a stop just above his armor. Shepard had no doubts that the weapon could cut through the Krogan armor like butter. She immediately feared for her friend, who was in mortal danger.

She glared back up at the gold one, only to find it wasn't looking at her, but at the alien she was sitting on. She wasn't sure, but the look in its eye wasn't anger, but worry. Was this alien its friend? Family? She didn't know but it was clear the gold one didn't want it harmed. Its eyes snapped back to Shepard, hard stare returning. It barked something, its voice deep. It said it again, followed by something else. Was it trying to communicate?

Shepard shook her head. "I don't understand you."

It paused, before growling. It roared the same words, moving its sword arm harrowingly closer to Wrex. And finally, Shepard understood. It was asking for her to surrender. She didn't know if it was to save the alien she had pinned, or just to end the fight, but she was certain it wanted her to lower her weapon. But should she? What guarantee did she have that these aliens wouldn't just kill them all the second she surrendered? She didn't know, and she couldn't know. All eyes in the room turned to her, both familiar and unknown. The course of the next few minutes was to be decided solely by her.

"I think it wants to save its friend, Jane." Kaiden said weakly from close by. "Drop your gun."

"No, that alien is our only bargaining chip. Don't surrender Shepard." Garrus said darkly, his sniper aimed at another alien.

She heard Wrex grunt from under the gold one. "What are you waiting for Shepard? Take it out now!"

The alien repeated its words again, this time talking quietly. She got the sense that was the last time it would ask. She was out of time, and she needed a decision now. She took a deep breath, closing her eyes. After weighing the options, she came to one conclusion. And honestly, she'd known this would be her choice from the start.

She opened her eyes.

She made her choice.


	3. Chapter 3

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* * *

Chapter 3

"Release him!" Thel roared. "I will not ask again."

He could feel his heart racing, the urge to do combat burning in his veins. The few warriors he'd brought aboard the alien craft had proven more than a match, and he had more in the Phantom outside. The various aliens inside had fought with ineffective weaponry, some firing metal projectiles. They could win, easily. But he hesitated, boot firmly planted on the reptile under him. It roared something intelligible, Thel assumed it was to the alien across the vast room, sitting on top of his friend.

Matau Leson had gotten carried away, and had been surprised by one of the aliens. Thel had been surprised to learn that some of the smaller ones wielded some kind of blue energy attacks from their bare hands, like magic. One such fighter now sat atop Matau, weapon aimed at his chest. Thel could both see and smell Matau's blood, which only pushed him closer to bloodlust. But for the sake of his friend, he held back.

"Release him…" He said, one last time. He stared directly into the aliens bright green eyes, hoping to convey some kind of understanding.

The alien appeared female, though Thel couldn't be certain. It looked similar to the majority of aliens here, with soft pinkish skin. Bright red hair fell down from the top of its head, reminding him of certain types of Jiralhanae. Though this alien physically appeared much more pleasant that any of those monkeys. It green eyes were staring right back at him, calculating. Thel assumed it was thinking, though about what she wasn't certain.

It slowly got up, stepping off Matau. Thel resisted the urge to sigh in relief, keeping his stature tall. He couldn't show a sign of weakness, especially around this being. From the way others spoke to it, and seemed to act around it, Thel got the impression that it was the leader.

The alien began walking toward him, its weapon resting in its arms. Thel's nerves were becoming shot. Was it walking over to challenge him? Would it fire as soon as it got close? He couldn't tell, or even begin to understand.

One of his warriors growled a warning, aiming his Carbine at the red headed creature. It looked at the warrior, but didn't stop walking. It walked with a sense of authority, as if its mere presence was enough to convey power. Thel was right in assuming it was the commander.

One of the aliens shouted something, calling out a word. "Shepard."

The leader turned, saying something short and abrupt. The other one fell silent, obeying its orders. Thel watched as it got closer, walking right past his own forces like they weren't there. Thel was truly confused now. What was it doing?

It stopped short of him, standing a few feet away. It glanced down at the large reptile Thel had pinned down, speaking a few soft words. He felt the creature stir under him, replying to its leader in a gruff tone. The alien repeated its words, sharper this time. The reptile took a moment to respond, before saying something in an angry tone.

The leader looked back up at him. The height of these beings would have been funny normally, they barely came up to his chest. But the stare it was giving him made all humorous thoughts vanish. It looked as if it was studying him, analyzing him. Thel felt his muscles tense, waiting for it to attack. Its firearm was pitiful, but the magic it wielded hurt. It had punched right through his shielding, two of his mandibles still throbbing from the impact. He gripped his sword tightly, ready for anything.

Then it dropped its weapon.

The firearm clattered to the ground, making a dull echo. Thel blinked, momentarily stunned. Around him, his warriors began murmuring, muttering. This being had just given up its weapon. Not only that, but it had moved closer before disarming itself. This was unheard of among Sangheili. To lose your weapon was dishonorable.

But Thel was still looking into its eye, and he didn't see defeat. It folded its arms, sighing. It then purposefully flicked its eyes down to the reptile, before giving Thel a pointed look. At last, he understood, or thought he did.

"An exchange?" He tried to ask. The alien didn't seem to understand him, as he expected. But, it did turn partially and gesture behind itself.

Thel followed its gaze, feeling a jolt go up his spine. Matau was getting back on his feet, clutching at his side. Purple blood oozed out from under his hand, painting the metal floor. He needed help, badly. Thel also noticed that none of the aliens were trying to stop him from moving, though they wearily held their distance.

He looked back at the leader, whose lips had turned upward. Thel swore he recognized this gesture, it was something some of the Jiralhanae did. It was called a smile, something they did when happy, or trying to be. He flexed his mandibles, considering.

So, the aliens were letting Matau go? In return for the reptile he lend, Thel assumed. He saw the alien look down again at the large red creature, though his time he saw a flash of something in its eyes. Something Thel recognized immediately for once. He was sure he'd been wearing the same look just moments ago, before the stand of.

Concern.

This being cared for the one Thel stood over. And if it could feel things the same way Thel could, he knew that it would suffer greatly if he harmed it further. His eyes flicked back to Matau, who was walking back over to them now, letting out gasps of pain. Thel's mind raced with possible outcomes and scenarios, struggling to make a decision.

The alien suddenly said something, its tone of authority now gone. It spoke softly, with a level of care. He couldn't understand it, but he could get the gist from the way it spoke.

"Please."

And that was all he needed to hear to make a decision.

"Warriors, lower your weapons." Thel ordered, taking a step back and freeing the red creature.

He heard more than one voice of disapproval. One warrior spoke up. "But sire! We have them, why do we gave up the advantage?"

"For reasons I doubt you could understand, young one." Thel replied, letting his sword die out and placing it on the ground, purposely. "When you have seen many battles, you become ill of seeing the dead. If there is no need for it, then there shouldn't be any."

He heard the warrior balk, but he ignored him. He gestured to the others, eyes still on the leader. "Assist Matau, get him some medical assistance. Stop the bleeding."

"Yes sire."

The warriors immediately rushed to do his bidding, advancing across the room to help their brother. Thel noticed some of the aliens become increasingly twitchy, weapons still in hand. He felt a moment of panic. Maybe this was a mistake…

The leader suddenly turned its back on him, talking to the group behind it. Its voice carried authority, speaking loudly and sharply. Some of the aliens seemed to want to argue, but more words from their leader silenced them. Begrudgingly, they lowered their weapons. The leader looked back at him, doing that smile again, before kneeling down beside the reptile, talking in a hushed tone.

Thel took that breath he'd been holding, secretly glad he could avoid the bloodshed. Sangheili prided themselves as warriors, but Thel had never agreed with the mentality himself. It was the reason he put emphasis on his citizens learning how to grow food, or heal wounds. These things were just as important, if not more so, yet many would disregard such things.

He heard Matau groan. His warriors had dragged the injured Sangheili toward the back of this room, near the breach they had created to get inside. Thel gave the leader one last look before walking over to his comrades. He also noticed aliens guarding the entrance they came from, some kind of elevator. They gripped their weapons tightly.

The sighed. He'd averted bloodshed, but would it last?

"Fleet Master?" One of the pilots of the Corvette called out over the comms. "What's is happening? Do you wish us to engage the vessel?"

"No." He said. "Remain where you are. We do not fight…for now."

* * *

"I could have taken them sire…" Matau said weakly. "No need to surrender to the enemy."

"We did not surrender." Thel told him, crouched beside the downed warrior. "We seem to be at a truce, though for how much longer I do not know."

He looked back at the aliens on the other side of what Thel had assumed was a hanger. It had been close to half an hour now, and both forces were sticking to their sides like glue. He could see some of the aliens were throwing them nervous glances, weapons within close reach. His own warriors appeared just as tense, hands resting next to sword hilts.

He sighed, looking down at his friend wound. Luckily, the projectiles had missed anything vital, though the injury wasn't one he was used too. Plasma left burns, eating away at flesh and automatically cauterizing any would. But the metal pellets these fighters used had punched into his flesh, creating holes. A little barbaric in his opinion, but he was just thankful Matau was alive.

He heard a commotion coming from the alien's side, turning his head to inspect the source of the noise. Three of the beings seemed to be having an argument, a heated one by the looks of it. The leader stood in between two others, another pink one like the leader, and an alien completely covered in some kind of suit. The leader seemed to be trying to talk to them both, hands coming up to separate them.

The suited one gestured toward him and his warriors. He had suspected the argument would be about them, but that all but confirmed it. The other arguer threw a hateful glance his way. That one he assumed was arguing for conflict. Thel wasn't surprised, he would he angry too if hostiles had invaded his ship.

However, he had given his warriors strict orders not to kill unless presented with no other choice. Thel himself had tried to intimidate the leader with a close stab, but they had pushed him back with its powers. All in all, things could have turned out a lot worse than they had. And, judging from the loud shouting, they still could.

The leader suddenly snapped, rounding on the louder angry alien. It went quiet immediately, folding underneath the intense stare and words of the commander. It said something else, before looking in his direction one more time and storming off. The leader turned back to the suited one, paused a moment, before nodding.

Thel felt his nerves rise when the two began walking over to his warriors. The chatter in the room died down, as the two crossed the distance in a slow, deliberate manner. Thel thought they didn't look to want to fight, but he couldn't be certain. And he wouldn't let the suited one near Matau while injured. So he rose to his feet and began walking toward them.

They stopped as Thel reached them, near the middle of the room. He could feel all eyes were on them in that moment. He looked back and forth between the two questioningly, hoping for an answer to their being here.

The suited one pulled something out of a pocket, holding it out in its three fingered hand. Thel could see it shaking slightly, clearly nervous. Not wanting to cause further trouble, Thel slowly moved his hand out, lightly grabbing the small object it held with two fingers. The alien pulled back immediately, reaching into another pocket and pulling out a second object, identical to the first. This one it gave to the leader, who took it casually.

Thel looked over the tiny thing he now held. It looked like some kind of computer chip, like none he'd ever seen before. It truly was tiny, he was afraid he might crush it if he held it any firmer. He looked back down at the two, confused as to why they had given it to him.

The leader waved a hand, getting his attention. It held up its own chip, before lifting its head and placing the small device on its neck, making a small click. It then smiled, pointing to the chip on its neck, then the one Thel held. He blinked, looking back down at his own. What exactly was it? It couldn't be a weapon, why bother if they could shoot and use magic? Perhaps it was some kind of…communication device.

The suited alien repeated the gesture, pointing to the device on the leader's neck before mimicking the actions it had taken, pointing to its neck. Thel lifted the device to his own neck, hesitating just above the skin. The two aliens nodded, indicating they wanted him to place it there. Taking a breath, he let it touch his skin. He heard a small click as it attached to his armor.

The leader chuckled, voice now sounding feminine. "Wow that was tense. Good work Tali."

He blinked, hand still touching the chip. "I can understand you. How?"

The leader, now positively female, smiled. "My friend here created these microchips. They translate what you hear into words you understand. Pretty cool huh?"

He looked down at the suited alien, nodding. "Thank you."

She didn't reply, looking to the commander. The leader chuckled. "She can't understand you, only you and I can." She looked over to the suited one. "He said thanks Tal."

The alien nodded, seemingly pleased. It turned and hurried back to the others, a spring in its step. The leader turned back to him, grinning. "She's very happy it worked. And that we didn't end up killing each other."

"That may yet happen…" Thel warned, looking up at the alien soldiers. "They still appear eager to fight."

"They wouldn't dare unless I ordered it." She said, tone serious. Her gaze flicked to the warriors behind him. "I'd trust you command your own soldiers the same way?"

"My warriors may not see the wisdom of such an act, but they will not disobey." He affirmed, tilting his head. "What do I call you?"

She blinked, before laughing. "Oh, right. We don't even know each other's species. Sorry, I haven't discovered an alien race before."

"That makes two of us."

She laughed again, before coughing and trying to appear serious. "Commander Jane Shepard of the Alliance Navy. Specter of the Council. My species if Human, as are the majority of my men here. The others I can explain later."

Thel nodded, finally glad to have a name to use. "I am honored, Jane Shepard. I am Thel Vadam, Master of the Fleet of Superior Justice, Kaiden of Vadam Keep. We are the Sangheili, proud warriors of Sanghelios."

"Wow, what a mouthful." Shepard replied after a moment's silence. "Mind if I just call you Thel?"

"This is acceptable." He responded.

Shepard went to say something further, but she stopped and looked over his shoulder. Heavy footfalls alerted him to one of his warriors coming up behind him. He turned his head, leaving his body facing the Human commander as a sign of trust.

"What is it?" he asked.

The warrior bowed his head, glancing at Shepard. "Sire, Matau needs greater attention than we can provide here. He must be brought back to the ship."

"Of course, I will inform our new friend." Thel said, dismissing the warrior.

"What was that about?" Shepard asked, eyeing the retreating warrior curiously.

Thel turned his head to look at Matau. The Sangheili was doing his best to appear unharmed, but his breathing was labored, and he winced with every breath. He turned back to Shepard. "My friend is in need of medical aid. He must be returned to our ship, where he can receive the attention he needs."

"We have a medical station onboard." Shepard said immediately. "We may not know Sangheili biology, but you could bring a doctor over here."

"We do not have doctors." Thel informed her. "The practice is seen as shameful, though we have a few who study the art…"

He hesitated. "Why would you allow us access to your ship? I am amazed you are being as civil as you are."

Shepard shrugged. "Honestly? I trust you, not sure why…I think it was the look in your eye, during the standoff. Reminded me of myself."

Thel nodded, understanding. "I am just glad we could converse at all. It was never my wish to harm any of you, but situations such as these get out of hand very fast."

"Hah, I couldn't agree more…" Shepard said with a chuckle. She turned back to the men guarding the elevator. "Hey, we're letting the aliens up to the medical ward, alright?"

He could see the incredulous looks they gave her, but to their credit none of them dared to disobey her. Thel got the sense again that this woman was not one you wanted as an enemy. Something about her screamed power, despite her seemingly laid back demeanor.

He turned back to his troops. "Bring Matau to the elevator over there, the Humans have offered their medical unit for him."

"Can you trust them sire?" One asked, hoisting up the injured warrior. "They could be preparing a trap."

"No, I have spoken with their leader. And I trust her." He declared. "Do you question me?"

"No sire." They all said, beginning to drag Matau across the room.

Thel walked in front of them, with Shepard right beside him. She waved a hand dismissively at the guards, who moved at her beckoning. The elevator itself was clearly not designed for Sangheili, as Thel and his warriors were forced to crouch down to fit. Shepard laughed at the sight, managing to squeeze in herself.

The lift ride was short, the doors opening up to some kind of crew quarters. Thel could see tables and chairs, odd smelling food in bowls and on plates. Everything had a very gray shine to it, most surfaces just bare metal with no color. It was _very_ different to any Sangheili ship, which usually had a purple hue to most décor.

Shepard led the way, stepping out of the lift and over to a side section, large windows showing off the interior. Inside was a host of machinery Thel couldn't even begin to understand, but he assumed it was used in the arts of healing. Shepard patted a flat surface, bedding of some kind. Matau was placed down, his legs hanging far off the edge. Thel felt a little humorous, the sight of his friend on such a small bed quite funny indeed.

"You're soldiers can work in peace, I told my crew not to disturb you." Shepard said, walking back toward the door. She stopped, looking back at Thel. "I'm placing a lot of trust in you here, please don't make me regret it."

"I vow that we shall do no harm to you, your crew or your vessel. On my life." He swore. The human was right, she was allowing them, strangers, vast access to her ship. There was nothing stopping him from just ordering a takeover right now, most of her forces still in the hanger. But she was trying to help him save Matau, so the thought barely touched his mind.

As far as he was concerned, she had proven herself.

* * *

"Shepard, I don't appreciate you loaning my medical bay to god knows what they are."

Shepard resisted the urge to groan aloud, trying her best to appear calm for Dr. Chakwas. "They have an injured soldier, what was I supposed to do?"

"Tell them to leave?" Ashley shot back, glaring. "Or even better, shoot them all."

"Ash…" Shepard said, clenching her fist. "I don't want to have a firefight on my ship, especially one where we could very well lose."

"You don't know that, Commander."

"Actually, she's right." Garrus spoke up, still laying on the floor. He'd been more hurt than anyone realized. The Doctor had been attending to him, and had told Shepard he'd received some minor burns, his armor taking the brunt of the plasma. It was a concussion she was worried about. But he was still hanging on. "You didn't fight them Ashley, they have better gear."

"That's not everything." She replied. "Skill comes into play as well."

"Then I hate to break it to you." He chuckled. "But they have that as well. That gold one took me and Wrex on, beat us both."

"Thel." Shepard said. "His name is Thel, he's kinda like the equivalent of their Commander."

Chakwas threw up her hands. "Regardless, what are you going to do when they patch their friend up? Shepard, you need to think about the crew-"

"I am." She snapped. "It's all I've been doing this whole time, trying to keep you all alive. And I feel really appreciated right now."

Before anyone could speak, she continued, putting on her commander voice. "Once the Sangheili have fixed up their friend, I'm hoping we can part ways amicably. We'll jump through the relay, get back to the Citadel. From there, we can get the ship fixed up, as well as a few particular people."

She made a very obvious look at Garrus, who chuckled at her stare. "Oh damn, I was hoping you were going to play nurse."

She rolled her eyes, but offered him a brief smile anyway. She spoke into the Comms. "Joker, any sign of the Mass Relay yet?"

"Uhh sorry commander." Joker replied. "But I can't seem to find it on the scanners. It's like it doesn't exist."

She frowned. "Why can't we find the Relay?"

"That's because it was destroyed."

She heard the people around her gasp, and she couldn't help but chuckle. Thel Vadam towered over everyone else as he stepped out of the elevator, his intricate armor making him appear even larger. His species really were giants. She wondered how large the halls on his ship were. His words however, made her frown.

"What do you mean?" She asked slowly, blinking at him.

He rumbled. "I assume you mean the device the Reaper Machines use to teleport around the Galaxy. The Relay that was used to link our system was destroyed hundreds of years ago."

She felt a jolt go up her spine, his words both confusing her further and freezing her blood. "Wait, the Reapers?! How do you know about them?"

"The Sangheili gods fought against them in times long gone, and failed." He explained. "We are aware of how dangerous they are. You fight them too?"

"Not exactly." Shepard hesitated. "We've only just learnt about their existence, and most people view them as…fake. I received a vison from a device, it showed me one of the Reaper attacks. We're actually on a mission involving that now."

Thel blinked, before standing a little straighter. "Any who would actively fight the machines are an ally to me. If you seek to fight them, I will pledge myself to your quest."

Shepard hesitated. "That's good and all, but without a Relay we can't use FTL travel. We're stuck here."

Thel seemed to chuckle. "Perhaps. But my ship is not, we move among the stars without the need for your Relays. Perhaps…I could be of assistance."

"What…are you suggesting?"

Thel explained, each word making Shepard feel more and more emotion. It was crazy, and she could get into a lot of trouble with the Citadel council for this. But, at the same time, his idea was the only one that made sense to her. After all, what was her alterative?

Ashley made an inpatient noise. "What is it saying? What suggestion?"

Shepard turned around, grinning from nerves. "He said that he would like to repay me for saving his friend, and that while there isn't a Relay, that doesn't mean we can't use FTL travel."

It took the others a second to process this, but they got it quickly. Chakwas gasped. "No, you mean…"

Shepard nodded, letting out a little laugh.

"Yep. He just promised to take us to the Citadel."


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey all! Wow, so happy to see people eager for more. Never imagined this would take off as much as it has, love you guys :P. I wont keep you wonderful people, so please, read on!**

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Chapter Four

"Human you say? And, they are friendly?"

Thel nodded, staring down at the small holo projection of Supreme Commander Xytan. "Yes sire, after a brief skirmish, we have come to a mutual understanding. They even allowed us access to their medical supplies to aid the wounded."

"Impressive." Xytan muttered. "But now the question remains…what do we do with them?"

"Sire…" Thel hesitated. "I have offered the Commander of their forces aid returning to their home, in return for assisting us. I understand if you disagree, but-"

"Be still friend." Xytan chuckled. "I have full faith you know what you're doing. I gave you full control off this mission. But remember, you represent our people. If these beings are truly as good intended as you say, then they could make useful allies."

"Yes…" Thel said, mandibles twitching. "They apparently claim knowledge on the Reapers, though most believe it to be a fairy tale."

"Then this is even more important." Xytan affirmed. "Secure an alliance with these people, and find out what they know. I expect full reports when you are able. Now, I must inform the Hierarches of the news."

"Of course, sire." Thel said, bowing.

The screen flickered off, the usual purplish glow of the bridge returning. He exhaled, heart returning to its usual rate. The fact the Supreme Commander had not only agreed with him, but seemed eager for him to follow through was a stroke of luck. But his nerves was still on edge. While his commander had agreed, the fact he was essentially representing his entire race to a strange group of alien leaders weighed heavily on him…

The Sangheili had of course met other life besides their own. The Jiralhanae had been discovered shortly after spaceflight was achieved. Primitive and brutal, they had been closely watched on their home world, ensuring the violent creatures never became equals. Some had earnt their rights into the Sangheili Covenant, but most remained on their own world, and more importantly, away from the Sangheili.

"What is the status on the Human ship?" Thel asked a technician, who was busy monitoring the alien craft.

The 'Normandy' as Shepard had called it, fit inside of the Corvette's hanger bay comfortably. The Commanders forces remained inside, uneager to step out of their comfort zone. Thel had told Shepard that they were permitted to explore his ship, provided they were accompanied by his own warriors. He trusted Shepard not to sabotage, but as for those she commanded…

"It is still secured Sire." The young technician told him. "Would you like to send word to the warriors guarding it?"

"No need." Thel said, turning toward the door. "I shall go there myself."

He left the bridge, located in the centre of the ship, and continued down a dim corridor. Sangheili design meant that the bridge, arguably the most vital section, was also the most protected. Display screens showed the outside, providing them with a full range of vision. It was a design that had been perfected over many years of conflict.

Thel stepped into a lift that went down into the hanger bays. Anti Grav technology gently lowered the platform he stood on, without so much as a gentle hum. He stepped off the lift, surveying the scene before him.

The warriors he'd left to guard the ship were now all gathered near the rear of the ship. Thel also spotted the flaming red fur of the Commander, who seemed to be conversing with them. Thel frowned, had the woman Tali created more of the language chips? He strolled over, voices reaching his ear as he got closer.

"How do you wield such sorcery?" One of the younger minors asked, sounding awed.

Shepard chuckled, holding up a hand with a flash of blue energy. "We call it Biotics, it's not so much magic as it is energy manipulation."

"Are your 'Biotics' chosen at birth?" An older Sangheili asked.

"No, though most have to be born with the ability." Shepard said. "In humans it has to be trained thoroughly from an early age, though some like the Asari have a natural talent."

"An impressive tidbit, and one I can attest too personally." Thel said, walking through the crowds to stand before Shepard. "Biotics as you call them seem very powerful. Can all species you know use them?"

Shepard hesitated. "In theory, though it can be _very_ hard for some. It requires unborn babies being exposed to Element Zero, the same substance we use for FLT travel." She smirked, gesturing to him. "Why, thinking of your own soldiers with Biotics?"

He shook his head. "No, I have no wish to appropriate your gifts. Merely curious. Did you engineer create more communication devices?"

"Tali? She not only did that, she improved upon it too." Shepard said with a smile. "Now, anyone wearing one will be translated to those who aren't. Figured it might be important when we reach the Citadel."

"Yes…it might." Thel murmured. "Have you given thought to how we should proceed? I imagine your Council will not be pleased to find our ship so close by."

"I'll radio when we arrive, hopefully they don't open fire."

"…Hopefully?"

Shepard shrugged. "I have a habit for annoying the Council, though this might just top the list. Pretty much goes against every First Contact rule ever devised."

Thel grunted. "You don't fill me with much confidence, Commander."

"Eh, we'll wing it. Kind of my specialty." Shepard said with a laugh. "Any idea when we'll arrive?"

"Our travel is fast, though not instantaneous. We will arrive at your coordinates within the space of an hour." He informed her. "But, that is not the reason I came down here."

"Oh? Then what was?" Shepard asked.

"You allowed me access to your ship, an act I'm sure that upset some of your warriors." Thel began, but Shepard interrupted with a wave of a hand.

"You had a man down, don't thank me." She said. "And as for my crew, they'll keep their opinions to themselves."

"All the same, I would like to extend the same curtesy." Thel said. "In particular, I thought you would be interested in seeing the bridge. It is…larger than your own."

"Everything of yours is larger buddy." Another voice said. He turned his gaze to find another human standing at the edge of the Normandy hanger, holding onto a railing. He moved stiffly, as if injured or sore. Despite this, he wore another of those smiles Humans seemed fond off. "Your ship dwarfs ours. But I'd love to see how you fly such a big girl."

Shepard chuckled. "That's Joker, the pilot of the Normandy. Don't take him seriously, I never do."

Joker made a noise of complaint, but Thel chuckled. "You are welcome to follow as well, pilot. As are any of your forces that wish too. I offer open arms."

"Seriously?" Joker exclaimed, eyes lighting up like a youngling. "Awesome! Though I might need someone to carry me…Jane?"

Shepard sniffed. "We could always tie you to Wrex's back?"

"Sorry, too brittle for rope."

She sighed. "…I suppose I could help. But first we find out if anyone else wants to come, I doubt Thel here wants to do multiple rounds of his ship…It's pretty big."

"Yes, you keep mentioning that…" Thel said, mandibles twitching. "Do your vessels not reach this size?"

"Our Dreadnaughts do, but that's the extent of it. The Council prohibited creating ships any larger, and the amount of Element Zero needed to power one larger would be ridiculous."

"This 'Element Zero' seems more like a hindrance then its worth."

"Perhaps, though we never found an alternate means of power. Why, what do you use?"

Thel chuckles. "Patience, I will explain as best as I can, when you assemble the rest of your friends."

Shepard nodded, turning back to Joker. "Hey, go around the ship and ask who wants to come on our little field trip."

Joker looked at her incredulously. "Are you kidding? It took me this whole time just to get down here. And stairs _suck._ "

Shepard groaned, smacking her hand into her forehead in a gesture Thel had never seen before. She looked back up at him, noticeably less happy then before.

"I'll be right back."

* * *

"This is incredible!" Tali exclaimed, gazing around in awe as the group were led down a massive corridor.

Shepard chuckled, silently agreeing with the Quarian. She'd gotten a good view of the hanger, but for a ship this size she thought that was pretty standard. Now she understood much better, the Sangheili didn't understand the concept of 'modest'.

The ceiling stretched high above them, the walls alight in alien runes and symbols, holographic. The metals were all shades of purple, the lights shades of blue. This gave the ship a darker tone than any Alliance vessel, but the glowing symbols on the walls provided enough illumination to see.

"What do the markings mean?" She called out to Thel, in front of their group.

The massive Sangheili came to a stop, his golden armor reflecting the lights. "They tell stories Commander. Of our bravest warriors, and the tales of great battles."

"Doesn't that seem like a waste of space?" Garrus asked, standing beside her. "Uhh, with all due respect…"

Thel tilted his head, as if Garrus's query was odd. "We honor our warriors in every aspect of life. They fell so we could move forward, they should be remembered as the great fighters they were. Do you not honor your fallen?"

"We do." Shepard said quickly. "But usually we erect monuments, or create special places to remember them."

"Warriors die on ships and on the battlefield, not around a stone statue." Thel said. "They should be honored where they stood."

Shepard let that sink in. It kind of made sense, but at the same time trying to remember _every_ name and face must be long and tiring work. She didn't envy the one responsible for creating the symbols and remembering all the names. Though as she thought about it, they were probably honored to do so. The Sangheili seemed into honor and stuff pretty hardcore.

"What are the walls made off? I have never seen this metal before." Tali said abruptly, changing subject. "And what is the source of the holograms? I can't seem to see a projector anywhere."

Thel chuckled, turning back around. "Patience, I do not have all the answers. The technicians on the bridge will have the keys to your questions. In due time."

"Yeah, could we hurry it up? I wanna see the bridge already." Joker huffed.

Shepard threw him a quick glare, hefting his weight to get more comfortable. The pilot of the Normandy had managed to not only get her, but Garrus to carry him between them. They both had one of his arms slung over their shoulders, holding him up so he could walk properly.

"You could be a little more grateful." Shepard grumbled, following behind the rest as they continued.

"Oh please, can't you tell how thankful I am?" Joker said, scoffing.

Garrus suddenly chuckled. "I could accidentally drop you Joker. Say my fingers slipped."

Joker threw him a glare. "You wouldn't.

"Want to take that risk, Joker?"

Joker didn't say anything, looking ahead with a sullen face. Shepard laughed, patting the Turian's hand behind Jokers back. Garrus chuckled at well, poking her back. She was surprised when Garrus had announced that he wanted to come as well, but she was glad he was here. He always managed to make a situation funny somehow, naturally defuse the tension.

Shepard almost ran into Wrex, who had come to a stop in front of her. He grumbled, gaining the attention of the others. He gazed into a room they'd just been about to walk past, his reptilian eyes unreadable. "I have a question, alien."

Thel turned back around, following the Krogan's stare. Shepard did too, leaning around to see what the focus was. The room appeared to be some kind of armory, with weapons and tech Shepard couldn't dream off. Several of the Sangheili soldiers were inside, either performing maintenance on equipment, Shepard assumed, or gearing up. Most wore the blue armor like the ones who raided the ship, appearing basic in comparison to Thel's armor. One however, wore a scarlet armor, more grandiose than the rest. He threw them a silent look, before going back to fiddle with some kind of hand gun.

"What is your question, warrior?" Thel asked, standing above Wrex.

Wrex, while smaller, still managed to look intimidating. The Krogan were considered among the largest race known to the Council, both prized and feared for their size and strength. Wrex didn't seem deterred by these new aliens size, glaring up like an equal.

"How do your weapons work? Or do you not have the answer for that either?" He grumbled, eyes narrowing slightly.

Thel however, either didn't see the challenge, or just didn't care. He kept the same casual demeanor he'd had since the beginning. "I do know the answer, all who would be warriors must know how to maintain their weapons in battle. They are an extension of ourselves, to lose your weapon is dishonorable."

"What about those swords?" Wrex pressed. "Do all of your troops carry them?"

Thel answered his by drawing his own sword, nothing more than an elaborate hilt. Everyone gasped when the blue blade lit up, the air sizzling around the energy blades. Some people even took a step back. He chuckled, rotating the sword slowly as everyone could see.

"No, only those who have proved themselves are offered the chance to be a swordsman. It is amongst our highest honor to be chosen."

"Are all the blades blue?" Tali asked, tilting her head and stepping closer. "I imagine it depends on what energy source is used, no?"

"You would be correct." Thel said, nodding. "Traditional swords are blue, and the most common. However, warriors of a legendary caliber, ones who have surpassed all and attained legends of their own, are gifted with special blades. Each is colored differently, powered by a unique form of energy."

"What are the colors?" Garrus asked.

"I shall gave an example. My Supreme Commander, the leader of all Sangheili forces, wields a blade as red as the skies of ours world. It is unmistakable, easily spotted amongst the battlefield, as it should. It is called Oathkeeper."

"Sounds impressive, this Supreme Commander." Wrex grunted. "Bet he could kick your ass."

"You would be correct, he is the mightiest of warriors, and he has more than earnt that title." Thel said, his blade vanishing. He placed it back along his thigh, magnetically sticking to the armor.

"What about your armor? You use energy shields right?" Tali asked, sounding eager again.

"Correct." Thel said with a small laugh. "Each warrior is equipped with a portable shield, covering most of their armor. As are our ships, though on a much larger scale. Depending on the power source, shielding can be incredibly powerful. Our warships in particular can withstand immense power before fading."

"Amazing…" Tali breathed. "But, surely this isn't as efficient as kinetic barriers. A shield needs to be powered at all times. How do you maintain so much energy output without running out of fuel so quickly?"

"Plasma based generators." Thel explained. "These provide enough power for the shields and all our weapons and systems. Sanghelios had not had an issue with power management for centuries."

"Sounds pretty incredible." Shepard said, grinning. All of this was sounding pretty cool to her. "But how didn't you discover any Prothean technology, like the rest of the galaxy? How did your people discover all of this?"

"Allow me to explain." Thel chuckled, before turning to the rest of them, his mandibles flexing. "The Sangheili discovered plasma technology centuries back. It was both a blessing, leading us to create great space craft and furthering our evolution. But it could also be described as our greatest curse."

"How so?" Garrus asked, looking genuinely curious now. "Not to be rude, but your weapons trump anything I've ever seen. And that's just your hand held fire arms, I can't imagine the power this ship wields. Why call it a curse?"

"Power is not always for the best." Thel said cryptically. "You are right in your assumption, our ships are capable of absolute destruction. In fact, I believe there is a tale here that will illustrate it perfectly…"

He walked over to a wall, pressing his hand against one of the symbols. It pulsed, before vanishing, a small screen showing up on the wall. Everyone gathered closer to see what was being showed. Thel kept talking as the silent video began playing.

"Long ago, a civil war was fought, more fearsome than any we had seen before. Our people, now equipped with great weapons, tore our civilization apart, all in the name of our gods. The battle lasted over a hundred years, and ended with the destruction of our furthest colony…"

Shepard gasped, she couldn't hold it in. The screen suddenly displayed a planet, seen from space. Once, it might have been the same blues and greens as Earth, a blue jewel in the blackness of space. Covered in life, a beacon in the middle of a lifeless galaxy.

But what was shown was a scarred world, black and lifeless. The surface was riddled in molten rock and metals. Smoke blotted out most of the sky, and what could be seen was nothing more than gray…nothing. The ground was flat, dead. Nothing lived, nothing could possibly live on such a ruined surface.

"Oh my…" Garrus breathed beside her.

Thel sighed. "Plasma, focused through a lens, is among our most powerful weapons. It is called Glassing."

"I can see why." Wrex said, eyes flicking over the image.

"This world was once a land rich with life, responsible for supplying Sanghelios with bounties of food and other materials. It was called, Harvest." Thel said, pressing a finger to the screen. It dimmed, replaced by the sigil once again.

"To do that to your own people…" Tali said quietly, shaken.

Thel turned his head to her. "It ended the hundred years of conflict, and we have been recovering ever since. Have your species not fought amongst themselves? Are we unique in this?"

Shepard spoke up immediately. "No, you're not. All species are guilty of open violence amongst ourselves, wars fought for petty reasons. But that…That wasn't a fight. That was extermination."

"Now you understand why I call it a curse." Thel muttered. "Should our people ever fight like that again, it could spell our extinction. And the Reapers wouldn't even need to appear, we will have done their deed for them."

Shepard perked up when he mentioned the Reapers. "You mentioned them earlier. How much do your people know about the Reapers?"

Thel seemed pleased at the topic change, taking a breath. "Legends tell of our mighty creators, the Forerunners. Beings who discovered the technology left behind by the ones before, we have no words for them."

He continued. "They built a mighty empire, spanning across the Galaxy. And then, the Reapers appeared. They tore into the Forerunners domain, technology useless against the great machines. But, the Forerunners were not entirely defeated."

"How so?" Shepard asked.

"They created new technology, capable of fighting the Reaper machines on even terms. But these discoveries took time, and by the time it was perfected, they had no chance of recovering. The Reapers had performed as their namesake."

She breathed heavily. "How did the Forerunners gain victory? Tell me!"

"Shepard, calm down." Joker said, but Shepard didn't care. Flashes of her vision blurred through her mind, a sense of urgency beating through her.

"Through sacrifice." Thel said quietly. "They realized they could not destroy the machines, not all of them. So they bestowed these gifts to another race, one primitive at the time. The Sangheili."

"What? Your like, the chosen one's?" Joker scoffed, but Thel looked serious.

"I do not know their true intent, but that is the legend." He explained. "They're ruins riddle our worlds, ancient machines and buildings appearing as new as when constructed. All Sangheili technology is based on these few relics, powerful as they are."

Shepard caught sight of a small, blue hand going up. Everyone turned to Liara, who had been silently tagging along until this moment. She had the look, the look she wore when she discovered something about the ancient Protheans.

"Please, I'd like some elaboration." She said, coughing quietly. "You talk of these 'Forerunners' like they are gods. Doesn't that mean these ruins are sacred to your people? Why would you pilfer them like that?"

Shepard felt like shutting her up, but when she glanced back to Thel, he didn't seem angry. In fact, he looked amused. "You have a sharp mind, Asari. I hope you do not lose that, for the mind is more valuable than most would think."

She stuttered, hand coming back down. Thel continued, turning back to the group. "She is correct, we do revere them as gods, our creators. And the ruins are worshipped by more…aged houses. More progressive Sangheili have taken from the ruins, and discovered their secrets. Without these mysteries, we never would have achieved space flight, or advanced our civilization."

He tilted his head. "It was what started the great civil war, the modern minds against the old. When Harvest was destroyed, all agreed that this power needed to be guarded, treasured and yet kept in check. We founded a truce, the base of our government ever since. We call it The Covenant, a signed peace between the families of Sanghelios."

It was a lot to take in, and Shepard was silently happy to see everyone was as silent as she was. Even Wrex looked thoughtful, maybe thinking how similar the Krogan's history was compared to these new aliens. Shepard took a moment to think what humanity would do with such power, and immediately regretted the thought. Some would see the wisdom of guarding it, true, but others would definitely take advantage of it, no question. Human history was riddled with such men, and she quickly realized humanity might not be here had they been the ones to discover this. They would have destroyed themselves long ago.

"How did the Forerunners stop the Reapers?" She asked quietly, unsure if she wanted to know.

Thel was silent for a few moments, as if considering explaining. "Through the ultimate form of sacrifice. They built a massive weapon, before broadcasting the location of their final world. The Reapers came in massive numbers, eager to snuff their flame out. The Forerunners activated the weapon, destroying many of the machines…and themselves in the process. This weapons name is the cause of many an argument, but most agree it was called 'Halo'. A weapon so powerful it drove back the machines, and destroyed the Relay that lay in our system."

"Halo..." She mouthed, his words hitting home. Such great people, and they had to commit mass suicide to earn a pyrrhic victory. From what Thel described, the Reapers had once been endless. Were they still, or did the Forerunners do more damage than anyone knew? And if this was the only way they could win, what hope did she have?

Her thoughts were interrupted by loud foot falls. A Sangheili ran around the corridor, coming to a stop just short of Thel. "Sire, I have no wish to interrupt you. But we are about to emerge out of Slip Space, and you are needed on the bridge."

"Of course, thank you for the information." Thel said, dismissing the messenger with a wave. He turned back to her crew. "Shall we leave history in the past, and continue into the future? I expect what happens next to make history for both of our people."

But Thel's story and words still haunted her mind. The capabilities of this ship weren't known to her, but she could imagine. This ship alone must be more powerful than anything in the Citadel fleet, even a Turian Dreadnaught, thought to be the most powerful ship built. In fact, this ship could possibly destroy the Citadel, if Thel wished it. Things could go south, very quickly. Either the Council reacted in a hostile manner on sight, or Thel could be insulted.

And she wouldn't be able to do a thing to stop him.

"Let's just hope we don't get a repeat of history…" She muttered to herself.


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey all! Sorry for the wait, alot of IRL stuff going on right now. I'll be trying to post more frequently, but you know, no promises.**

 **Anyway, I won't keep you. You've waited long enough. Read on!**

* * *

Chapter Five

Thel immediately knew something was off. The Corvette exited Slipspace, emerging into a sea of bright purple gasses. He could see the massive space station in the distance, its five arms beginning to retract and close. The station was giant, far larger than any non-terrestrial construct he'd ever seen. It would have been all he could focus on, were it not for the huge fleet of ships in front of it, opening fire.

His view of the screens left nothing out, as the large battle before them unfolded. The nebula was filled with the bright flashes of kinetic explosions and laser fire. Thel struggled to understand the sides of the conflict, to him there were no lines, no distinct markers for allies and enemies.

"Sire, we have arrived…" A crew member reported, looking up at him. "How should we proceed?"

Before he could utter a word, the Commander beside him gasped. She looked up at the view screens with a look of complete shock, and perhaps fear. A hand went up to her mouth, her eyes wide and unblinking.

"Commander? Which of those ships are allies?" Thel asked loudly. She didn't hear him. "Commander?"

The Turian, Garrus, nudged her with a hard push. "Come on Shepard, snap out of it!"

"Huh?" She said, blinking a few times as if snapping out of a dream. She took a heavy breath. "Right, sorry…the oval like ships are the enemy. See how they're a faint purple? They belong to the Geth."

"And the blocky looking vessels?" Thel asked. "Do they belong to your council?"

"Yes…" Shepard said quietly. Her eyes were still glued to the screens.

Thel looked back, quickly realizing why. The Geth ships seemed to be superior, faster and larger by a fraction. Now that he knew the sides, he could see the Council ships were trying to form a blockade around the Citadel. One large ship in particular, close to the size of the Corvette hovered in the heart of the battle cluster. But the Geth weapons were cutting through them with ease, several ships exploding into a molten mess.

"Do they not have shielding?" Thel asked, astounded.

"Yes, but it's kinetic, like my armor," Shepard muttered. "The Geth use ultra violet lasers, which our shielding can't deflect."

"Sire?" The crew member asked again. "What should we do?"

Thel stared up at the screen for a moment, twitching his mandibles lightly. It wasn't even a consideration at this point. He'd come to make allies of these aliens, and aiding them in battle would be a perfect example of that. The Geth ships, while larger, were still smaller than the Corvette. Some were small enough to not even be considered a threat. It barely took a second for him to make up his mind.

"Commander." He began, still analyzing the battle. "Take your crew and return to your ship. I'll leave the hanger open for you to depart."

"What?" She asked, tearing her eyes from the screens. "Why?"

"Because you need to help your friends," Thel said. "And the Sangheili will aid you. Fly out there, tell your Council we are on your side. I would rather not be shot at by both fleets."

Shepard didn't even hesitate, she ran out of the control room like lightning. Her crew wasn't far behind her, soon leaving him and the pilots of the ship alone on the bridge. He took to his seat, which was high enough to overlook the other stations on the bridge.

"Alert me when the Normandy has left the hanger bay," Thel ordered. "Until then, advance forward. Power up Plasma generators, and ensure we are ready for combat."

"Yes sire." The crew all spoke at once, flying into action. Many were tapping away at holographic screens, some running back and forth informing others of key information. They were fast and efficient. Warriors in every sense of the word.

"I want Seraph's at the ready in the event of enemy fighters." He continued. "We will drive this new enemy out, and show them the reason they should be afraid of our might. For the glory of Sanghelios!"

The crew and warriors around him roared in response, fists raised proudly. He knew the crew had been itchy around the new aliens, but finally they had something to point their aggression towards. Thel felt it too, a burning in his blood to fight. The desire to trump an enemy in combat. Ship fighting would never be as fulfilling as hand to hand combat, but it would do to quell the burn.

"Sire, the human ship has entered open space." One said.

Thel looked up at the screen, catching a glimpse of the tiny ship. It was among the smallest gathered here, but it was fast. It vanished into the distance, entering the fray of ship on ship violence. Thel hoped the Commander would make it, but shoved the thought out of his head. Sentiment had no place on a battlefield.

"Then advance," Thel ordered.

The Corvette pressed forward. The other ships must have seen them by now, the Sangheili ship easily the largest within the battle. Thel's suspicions were confirmed when several of the smaller 'Geth' ships turned to face them. The odd oval ships began charging some kind of weapon from their bow, their tips glowing a bright blue.

"Divert power to the forward shields." He ordered. The crew acted immediately, bringing more power to the barriers in front of the ship.

The Geth ships opened fire, bright flashes of light blinding the screens. The beams were fast, too fast to attempt to dodge, and hit their mark. There wasn't an indication that they had been hit, no rocking of the ship or sparking lights.

"Damage?" Thel asked loudly.

"Sire, they landed direct hits. Damage to shields was negligible. Should we show them true fire power?"

He looked back up at the smaller ships. They looked roughly the size of the Normandy, perhaps a little bigger. And if what Shepard had said was true, they also wouldn't possess any kind of energy based shielding. In a way…they were like small chunks of ice that floated around the poles of Sanghelios. Not a terrible threat.

Nothing a large plow couldn't fix.

"No, reserve plasma for now," Thel said, flexing his mandibles into a smile. "Advance forward. Show them our strength."

The Corvette maintained its speed, charging right for the Geth line. The smaller ships continued to fire, laser based weapons absorbed by the powerful shielding of his ship. Thel frowned momentarily when he realized they weren't attempting to move out of the way, but it mattered little. If they refused to move, he'd move them himself. One way or another.

The Corvette hit the front line of the Geth fleet. He felt the ship vibrate slightly as they collided with the first few vessels, but that was all. He wouldn't have known they'd hit something if he hadn't issued the order. On screen however, was a different story. The Geth ships had nowhere near the shielding needed to block the large ram, and had been flung wide. Most were wrecks, many shredded to pieces by the kinetic force.

"Sire, more of the Geth ships are turning to us. It seems they are abandoning their attacks on the alien fleet." A crew member reported.

"Or perhaps they realize the true threat…" Thel said quietly. "Turn us, bring the starboard side to face the enemy."

"Sire?"

The Geth fleet was advancing on them, many more ships than Thel had previously thought. The Corvette had plowed right through their ranks and had come to a stop mid ways between them and the Council vessels. The Geth had pulled away from the Council, their fleet regrouping before them. The three sides now hovered in a sort of triangle, with the Citadel forces still guarding their fortress in space.

The Geth had made a grave mistake, and that was moving at all. Among the other fleet, they would have been harder to hit, the risk of damaging an ally ship much higher. But now, they came toward the Corvette in free space, with no risk of collateral.

Thel chuckled. "Now, weopen fire."

* * *

"Shepard to the Destiny Ascension, come in!" Shepard said quickly, hovering over Jokers' shoulder.

The Normandy had reached the Citadel fleet, having snuck by the Geth ships. While they couldn't turn invisible, the Normandy could fool any known radar or detection software. That is, until the Sangheili came along. Still, it was among the best stealth ships known, and it was this fact that had allowed them to fly through the Geth fleet and reach the Council.

The Destiny Ascension loomed before them, a huge Asari warship created exclusively for the Council. It's four 'arms' housed an array of powerful weapons, including anti-ship missiles and laser based weaponry. It was considered one of the most powerful ships in the fleet, and judging by the wreckages around it, it was a valid thought.

"Commander Shepard?" A confused voice responded over the radio. "SSV Normandy, we read you! You've picked a hell of a time to show up."

"Can you patch me through to the Council?" Shepard asked.

"Uhh, Commander?" Joker suddenly said. "You might want to watch this, I'm picking up some big energy readings. And I mean _big_."

The Normandy veered around, turning to face away from the Citadel. The front view changed to an almighty sight. The Sangheili ship had advanced while they'd run, flying right toward the Geth forces. The ship was surrounded by many wrecked and damaged ships, and yet looked untouched. Shepard didn't know if Thel had opened fire or just run them over, but it was impressive either way. And eye opening.

"Shepard?" An irritated voice said over the comms.

She grit her teeth. The Council had never…fully appreciated her, or the information she brought to them. They had been happy thinking that Saren, the rogue Spector working for the Reapers, was normal. They'd wanted to believe she was delusional, until the evidence became too much to ignore. They'd issued her to chase after Saren, but still didn't believe her about the Reapers.

"Councilors, thank god." She said. "What's the situation, is everyone alright?"

"Never mind that…" A voice said. Shepard recognized the Turian Councilors voice.

"Really? Because there's a Geth fleet attacking the Citadel. I find that to be pretty big. Why wasn't I told?"

"Commander…" The Asari Councilor said slowly.

"I mean, don't you think you could have called me? Kind of an expert in killing Geth at this point."

"Shepard!" The Turian yelled. "Stop interrupting. Now, what in god's name is that?"

Shepard paused. "…If you're pointing sir, I'd like to remind you that this is voice only. I can't see what you're pointing at."

"He mean's the ship, Shepard." Another voice said, belonging to the Salarian Councilor. "What is that ship? How is it you both came from the same direction?"

"Oh, that," Shepard said, taking a sharp breath through her teeth. "That may be a new species. That I discovered."

A tense silence was all she could hear. At first, she thought the communication had dropped out. Then she heard breathing, realizing the Council was still very much present. Were they stunned? She wished they would say _something._ Anything.

"And you led them here?!" The Turian Councilor exploded. "You idiot! What if they turn on us after they finish plowing through Geth?"

She suppressed a hiss of annoyance. Alright, maybe silence wouldn't have been better after all. But still, she didn't let her anger get to her, not now. As many times as she'd hung up on them before, or left with a rude quip, this was serious.

"Sir, I have it on good authority that's not going to happen." Shepard began, remembering Thel's request.

"On whose authority? The Aliens?" The Salarian chipped in, sounding just as annoyed. "Did you consider they might be lying to you Commander? A ship that size…and we don't know its capabilities."

"Apparently, you're all about too. Energy readings are spiking, I've never seen anything like it." Joker said urgently, looking through the window with a worried expression.

Shepard had been so focused on the Council, that she hadn't been paying much attention. The Geth ships were descending on the Sangheili like flies on a fresh kill. Their numbers were in the hundreds, thousands. And while most of them were much smaller, a few were a lot closer to the Corvettes size. Thel had seemed confidant earlier, and Shepard knew that ship must have some pretty incredible firepower, but even then it looked like they might be overwhelmed.

Suddenly, the side of the ship began to glow. Shepard couldn't make out any distinguishable weapons, but large symbols lit up with plasma, growing brighter and brighter. The plasma pooled into three large oval shaped symbols, the entire side of the ship glowing a purple like blue. The Geth seemed unphased, and continued to fly directly toward them.

And then, the Sangheili opened fire.

Shepard had seen a lot of war in her life. She'd seen many battles, experienced many horrors. She'd been born on the colony of Mindoir, where her parents had been killed by raiders when she was sixteen. She'd managed to hide from them, long enough for the Alliance to show up and scare the raiders off. She'd joined up with the Alliance a few years later, not sure what else she could do.

She'd been present during the Skyllian Blitz, where she'd rallied the colonists present to fight against the pirates who'd come to kill them all. She'd even managed to fend them off by herself long enough for reinforcements to arrive. She'd fought in many battles after that, becoming the battle-hardened soldier she was now. Many fights, many weapons, she'd seen destruction on many scales.

She'd never seen anything like this.

The three ovals fired out streams of white hot plasma, which traveled in straight lines toward the Geth ships. The Plasma moved slower than usual weapons, but didn't seem able to miss. The Geth ships in front darted to the side of the large energy attacks, but the plasma moved with them, as if locked on. The Geth could only watch as the three blasts hit their targets directly. The smaller ships instantly evaporated, nothing left. Larger ships had huge holed punched into them, the hot energy cutting through layers of armor like butter.

The plasma would change targets as soon as it had hit its mark, turning in midflight with alarming speed. Shepard had no clue how on earth the Sangheili could control it like that, especially once it had left the ship, but the results were plain to see. The Plasma streaks bounded through the Geth fleet, ship after ship exploding into molten hunks. The plasma eventually dissipated, fading into a purple glow and then nothing.

It had taken around five seconds, but to Shepard it had felt like a life time. Much of the Geth fleet was in ruin. Many glowing wrecks now cluttered the space in front of them, floating there like a silent grave yard. It had been fast, efficient and utterly ruthless. That had not been battle, or war. The Sangheili had exterminated them, there wasn't another word for it. She knew the Geth were outmatched, but not by that much. They didn't stand a chance.

The remaining Geth opened fire. Bright laser fire and large explosions collided with the purple ship. None of the attacks actually made contact, instead hitting a bright blue shield which flared up upon contact. It rippled when hit, like a physical barrier. Shepard shook her head slowly, unable to look away.

The symbols on the ship began to glow again, at first a dull purple but growing brighter every second. The Geth must have realized this, for the fleet split apart at the sight, moving in from multiple angles instead of a head long charge. Lasers continued to pepper the shields, but they might as well have been throwing rocks.

"Whoa…" Joker breathed, for once speechless.

"Seems our new friend wasn't joking when he said they were dangerous," Garrus said quietly, making Shepard jump.

"Jesus! Don't do that." Shepard muttered, punching his shoulder lightly.

"Right, sorry," Garrus said, looking through the window.

Shepard looked back just in time for the next volley. Again, three streaks of white hot plasma shot out the side, flying at three different targets. The Geth were a lot more spread out now, but that hardly mattered when your attacker could lock on the way they did. Again, the three beams passed through the ships with no resistance, moving on to another once the target was destroyed. This second wave of attacks dissipated a few seconds later, leaving ever fewer Geth ships active.

"Shepard to Council…your seeing this right?" She asked into the comms quietly.

"I ask you again Commander, how can you be sure they are your allies?" The Salarian muttered.

Shepard didn't know how to respond to the question. She swallowed hard, watching at the Sangheili ship fired yet again, this time mopping up the few ships that remained. The beams chased the last few ships through space, flying faster than the Geth could move. Sure enough, save for a few scattered survivors, the Geth fleet had been destroyed. The Sangheili had taken them out, single handedly.

And Thel had said that was a _small_ ship.

"Commander…" The Asari councilor said quietly. "You said you spoke to them?"

"Yes…I did." Shepard said. "We had a scuffle, but they made peace. We wouldn't have made it back without them."

"Do you trust them Shepard?" She asked. "I know we haven't trusted your judgment before, but this time, I want to hear your opinion."

Shepard didn't answer at first, collecting her thoughts. "I spoke with their leader, and while I realize how destructive they could be, seems their leader did as well. He knew, but he seemed to resent it. I don't believe they would attack, as long as you don't fire at them."

"Are you sure?" She asked.

"…Yeah, I am." Shepard said, holding her breath.

There was silence on the other end for a while, the seconds ticking by. Shepard was praying the Council wouldn't try and do something stupid, like attack. The Geth were more advanced, and they'd barely lasted five minutes. But then, they'd done stupid stuff before…

"The Council will not attempt any hostilities against your new found species, Shepard." The Asari said.

Shepard breathed a sigh of relief. "Thank you, Councilor."

"Don't' think you're out of this yet." The Turian growled. "You're going to be a key part in negotiating with these aliens."

"Of course, sir," Shepard said, grinning shakily.

The Sangheili ship hovered where it had always been, surrounded by the corpses of other ships. It loomed there, like a dangerous purple shark. It made no moves to attack, or to move closer to them. It seemed Thel was keeping his word, thankfully. Communications would need to be established, especially if she was going to be the buffer between the two leaders.

"Joker, can you hail the Sangheili ship? I want to tell Thel the good news." She asked him.

The pilot though was frowning, tapping away at his screen. "Trying Commander, but somethings wrong. Our Comms are being jammed. I don't understand, it's like something else is making more noise, like a-"

He cut off mid-sentence, eyes going wide. "Oh no."

"Joker?" Shepard asked, heart beginning to flutter. Her eyes caught movement outside, bright flashes grabbing her attention.

At first, she thought it was Thel, but his ship remained where it had been before, unmoved. That's when she saw the ships. Many ships, appearing from Mass Effect jumps. Easily recognizable for their odd oval-like shapes.

Geth ships.

Many more than the attack force that had just been destroyed. And bigger, none of the smaller fighter like ships present at all. They kept coming, so many that they blocked out the view of space behind them. And still they kept coming.

"Oh, crap." Shepard cursed.

"It's not all," Joker said, eyes glued to his screens. "Something else is coming through, Geth signature. Big."

Another ship appeared, moving through the center of the Geth fleet. Similar in design to the other Geth vessels, it didn't have any particularly distinguishable differences. Except for size.

It was huge, dwarfing the other ships around it. It was far larger than anything the Council had, even the Destiny Ascension. It was even bigger than the Sangheili ship, which in itself was terrifying. The Corvette was moving now, turning to face this new threat.

The Geth Dreadnaught made a bee line for the Sangheili vessel, while the rest of the Geth ships moved toward the Citadel. The Council ships spurred into action, moving to intercept the new threat.

"Councilors, will the Normandy assist?" Shepard shouted as the first shots were fired.

Static answered her, intangible voices blurring in and out. She tried again. "Council? Can you read?"

"Commander!" The voice of the Asari Councilor yelled, sounding frantic. "Boarded-Need Hel-."

"What?" Shepard shouted, looking frantically for the Destiny Ascension.

The ship still hovered near the Citadel, though now that the Citadel fleet had advanced, she could see the much smaller ships hovering around it. Geth Boarding parties. Had the attack on the Sangheili been nothing but a distraction?

"Shepard!" Joker shouted, snapping her out of her daze. "Do we go fight in space, or help the Council? Your call."

Shepard only paused for a second, narrowing her eyes. "Joker, make for the Ascension. I'll take a team and secure the Council. Once we're aboard, go help the fleet however you can. And steer clear of that Dreadnaught!"

"On it." He said, immediately moving the ship into action.

"So we finally going to fight?" Garrus asked, quickly following Shepard as she stormed down the bridge and toward the stairwell.

"Yep. Get Liara prepped and meet me in the hanger." She said, not missing a beat.

"Understood," Garrus said, switching from Jokester to professional.

He hurried off to find the Asari while Shepard stepped into the elevator. The ship rocked as it dodged incoming fire, making the elevator shake. Shepard sighed, curling her fists nervously.

"I just hope we're not too late…" She muttered.


	6. Chapter 6

**Hey all! Now before we jump in, I just wanted to bring something up really quickly. I've noticed some people seem worried that I may be ignoring the lore of both universes, or that I'm just going to let the Elites walk all over everything. Well, that wouldnt be a very entertaining story would it?**

 **I'm a huge fan of both universes, and I've read as much lore on both as I can. So rest assured, I will not be making either side too powerful. Because again, that would be very very dull. Have faith friends!**

 **Alright, now that's out of the way...read on!**

* * *

Chapter Six

"Report, now!" Thel ordered, mandibles clicking in agitation. Crew members began firing off information rapidly, overlapping voices fighting to be heard.

"Sire! The fleet came out of nowhere, it wasn't detected on radar."

"The enemy vessels are moving for the Citadel forces, bypassing us completely."

"New target is approximately a third larger than our ship. Same shape as their earlier ships."

"Enough!" Thel roared, eyes on screen. "Turn us to face this new opponent. It may be larger, but we still hold a weapons advantage. Can sensors detect anything different about this vessel?"

A crew member shook his head. "Negative Sire. We…can't detect much of it at all. It may have a dampening field blocking us."

Thel watched as the Corvette turned to face the new enemy. Undoubtedly it was much larger than any of the ships he'd seen thus far, rivaling the Destiny Ascension that Shepard had pointed out for him. It _looked_ virtually identical in every other way, he couldn't see any hidden weapons or tricks. But then, he wasn't familiar with any of the technology he was facing against. He kept his guard up.

"Sire, enemy ship is fast approaching. I believe they mean to ram us."

Thel growled. "Open fire with the Plasma Cannons. Charge up pulse lasers, and prepare for evasive maneuvers."

The Geth ship picked up speed, as if sensing Thel's intent. He watched as a burst of Plasma flew toward the ship, the purple energy arcing right for the target. It smashed into the ship's hull, some kind of shielding flickering weakly.

"Direct hit Sire."

"Assessment?" He asked the crew member.

"Damage…negligible." The Sangheili responded, astounded.

Thel turned his head sharply back to the screens. The Plasma round had melted through whatever these creatures used as a barrier, but had come to a stop on the armor. He could see the Plasma boiling away the armor plating it had impacted, but it was almost looked like the armor wasn't part of the main hull. It melted away, leaving little a mark save for the missing armor piece.

"What is this?" He growled, narrowing his eyes.

"Scan's indicate the enemy is using sacrificial plating, designed for energy based weaponry, Sire."

"How could they know..." Thel pondered. "None of the Humans used such weaponry. How could these creatures possibly have created such defenses?"

"Sire? If I may…" A crew member spoke up hesitantly.

Thel turned his gaze to the nervous technician, his eyes unable to look through the helmet they wore. He nodded, indicating they could speak, all while flicking his eyes back to the screen.

"The enemy may have learnt about energy weapons from a different source." The technician said quickly. "Perhaps they know more about the Reapers than anyone, even us."

"You think this the work of the Machines?" Thel asked quickly.

Before the crew member could answer, a warning siren blared in the bridge room. The Geth ship had continued to speed right for them, its ceramic armor saving its main hull from the plasma bombardment the Corvette had been sending its way. Any second now, it would hit them.

"Move us sideways!" Thel ordered. "Are the Pulse Lasers ready?"

"Primed and awaiting your word, Sire."

"Fire on my mark."

The Corvette thrusted to the side, slowly advancing toward the Geth ship. Thel watched as the Geth ship came into view from the ships side, narrowly missing a collision. He had no idea if this thing could take out the shielding with brute force, but he wasn't certain he wanted to find out. He also noticed weapons on the side of the ship priming up, glowing turrets placed along its hull.

"Fire!"

Bright lights filled the screens as the two ships tore into each other. The bright pink flashes of the Pulse Lasers meshed with the pale purple of the Geth ships own weapons. He watched tensely as the two ships passed by, waiting for the flashes to die down. He felt his heart sink when he realized their armor plating had eaten most of the rounds, though a few smoking holes were scattered where laser fire had hit more than once. He could see no atmosphere venting out of the exposed areas, but then the Geth might not even need it.

"Damage report?" Thel asked.

"Shielding took all of the damage Sire." A Technician reported. "However, their weapons nearly tore through our defenses. We cannot survive another pass until the shields recharge."

He growled, watching the Geth ship as it slowed and began to turn, aiming itself toward them once again. He tapped his fingers against his chair, thinking. Obviously, the Geth ship was a lot more capable of attack them its brethren had been. Its armor proved a challenge, however he could overcome it if he could land multiple Plasma Blasts in the same spot. The issue was landing the hits. The Plasma could easily keep up with the large ship, but landing in the exact same spot would require pinpoint accuracy.

And that was a lot harder when the enemy had the current advantage.

"Sire? Enemy ship has turned to face us and is holding position."

This made him pause. The Geth must have known he was at a disadvantage. They had the element of surprise, plus his weapons were proving less than effective. They'd had no issue charging him before, and opening up with their lasers. So why wait now?

And then Thel realized. They must have been charging up a different weapon.

"Short range jump, now!"

"Sire?" A crew member asked.

"We are about to get hit, jump anywhere. Now!"

He watched, heart racing as the Corvette prepared to jump into slip space. The Geth ship's bow was beginning to glow, clearly preparing to fire something at them. It couldn't be a plasma weapon, none of the other Geth ships had used them. And lasers were only good for short range, as far as he knew. So what…

"Jumping now!"

The ship's screens went dark as they began to enter Slipspace. Just before they made the jump, the entire ship shook violently. Thel roared in surprise as he was knocked out of his seat, managing to catch himself just before his head hit the metal floor. The bridge was in chaos as technicians rushed about, trying to access what had hit them. He shook his head, arms aching from the impact as he slowly got to his feet.

"Status?" He asked slowly, watching as several screens and panels around the room sparked ominously.

"Slipspace jump was successful, but the enemy managed to hit our rear as he warped." One of the crew said. "Some kind of solid projectile, massive in size. It fired at a rate none of our weapons could replicate."

He swallowed. "Damage?"

"Shields are down and we've been scraped along the rear side. Damage is negligible and no vital systems have been compromised. Though, I shudder to think what a direct hit could do."

Thel hobbled back to his seat, falling into it. He watched as the ship exited its jump, a short distance away. The Geth ship remained where it had been before, not yet pursuing them. With no shielding and no defense against the enemy, the Corvette would go down in a single hit. He couldn't risk it, not the lives of his crew nor then technology on this ship. If this enemy were to possess it…they would destroy the Council forces even faster.

He could see the battle raging in the distance, behind the Geth Dreadnought. The Council fleets looked to be holding their own for now, but he knew they couldn't hold out against a force this size. They were too far away to see a ship as small as the Normandy, but Thel imagined it was ducking and weaving through the chaos.

He briefly considered warping out…just long enough for the ship to fully recover. But he dismissed the thought immediately. No doubt the Geth would blow through the Citadel the second his ship was no longer an issue, and that was something he could not ignore. As long as the Corvette was in play, the Geth would focus on him. Besides, Thel refused to abandon new allies, even if they weren't official allies yet.

"When will our shielding cycle?" He asked

"Sire, Shields will recharge in the next several minutes. But for now we are extremely exposed."

"We will not retreat." Thel said quietly, eyeing the Geth ship. It had spotted them, either visually or by sensors. It had begun to turn toward them again. Thel wasn't sure he wanted to see their main gun in action again.

He ordered the Corvette into evasive maneuvers, maintaining their distance from the enemy. While this Geth ship seems just as fast, he'd noticed it had a much slower turning radius. The Corvette was one of the more agile Covenant ships, able to turn on a dime. They were valued for their scouting capabilities, and while they hadn't been designed for frontal war, they had been designed for hit and run tactics.

The Geth ship fired, main gun lighting up. Thel didn't need to see the actual projectile to know it was large. It left a trail of gases behind it, passing just under them. The Corvette had managed to pull up just as the Geth had fired. Whatever this weapon was, it didn't seem able to lock on, and had to be fired manually. This was their one saving grace.

"Pay attention to that weapons cycle times. No doubt they will fire again." Thel said. "Maintain distance and continue evasive maneuvers."

The Corvette maintained course, bobbing up and down as the Geth ship continued to try and face them. It fired again, this time narrowly missing the rear of the ship. Thel noticed the shot had been much closer than before. They were adapting.

"Sire, we have a rough cycle locked in. Ship can fire its main gun every thirty seconds."

Thel nodded, pleased to hear something good for a change. An idea was already forming in his head, a clever little plan to deal with this threat. The Geth ship's used the Mass Effect technology Shepard had talked about. They couldn't warp without a relay, if they behaved the same as the Normandy. This gave him the movement advantage. The next time the ship fired, it would be vulnerable for half a minute. This is when he would strike.

"Sire, shielding is back up, though still far from fully charged."

"It will do. Prepare the Slipspace drive, prime the Plasma Cannons. Jump to these coordinates."

"By your will," The crew said in unison, working in sync to carry out his orders.

The Corvette opened up another Slipspace portal, passing through as the Geth fired a third time. This time, the shot scraped against the ships rear as it vanished. The bridge shook once again, his crew muttering as they worked

"Steady." Thel murmured, watching the black screens.

"Coming out of Slipspace…now." A Technician said.

The Corvette reappeared in open space, shielding flickering dimly. Through this time, they were directly behind the Geth ship. Thel flexed his mandibles into a grin.

"Are the cannons primed?"

"Awaiting your order Sire."

He narrowed his eyes at the Geth ship. They had emerged much closer to the enemy, right behind them. The Massive ship wouldn't be able to turn in time, and even if it could, its main weapon wouldn't be ready for them. The ship was covered in extra armor almost everywhere, except for its engines. The huge exhausts glowed brightly, giving off a lot of heat. It was a direct path into the ship, and one of the most vulnerable point on any ship.

"Fire."

Streaks of Plasma energy arced out on screen, flying right for the two large ports on its upper hull. The Geth ship began firing it's close range lasers as the balls of plasma flew ever closer, but there wasn't anything for them too hit. The beams crashed into the engines, melting through them with a satisfying explosion before continuing into the belly of the ship.

Thel nodded to himself. While the extra armor on the outside was a problem, he'd guessed the Geth surely wouldn't have armor inside. His suspicions were confirmed as explosions rocked the ship, blue flashes as sections of the vessel went critical. It was seconds later when the engines completely exploded, violently ripping the rear of the ship to shreds.

The Corvette shook from the explosion, though Thel had never been happier. The bridge crew around him cheered as the Geth ship continued to explode on screen, falling apart into a million pieces. He chuckled, pleased that he had managed to outwit these beings.

"Well done, though we shouldn't celebrate yet…" He said loudly, gaining the crews attention. "Can we raise Normandy on the comms?"

"Your will be done." A Technician rumbled, beginning to fiddle with a holographic display. "Human ship Normandy, this is the Journey's Spear. Can you understand us?"

A voice filled the comms, sounding somewhat annoyed. "Yeah yeah we read you guys. Nice work on that ship by the way, saw the explosion from over here."

Thel recognized the voice as the Human pilot, oddly named Joker. "Where is your commander? I'd like an update on how your forces are faring."

"Well, I think I can safely say that after your victory out there, a lot of the Geth have pulled back," Joker said with a laugh. "Apparently they're smarter than they look."

"Good, I am happy to have helped." Thel rumbled.

"Uh huh," Joker said. "As for the commander, she took a small team to the Destiny Ascension. Last I heard, it was being boarded."

"This is your leader's ship?" Thel asked.

"Yep. Anyway, I've gotta go, piloting a ship through a warzone single handedly needs concentration. Joker out."

Thel paused, glancing at said ship from the screens. Shaped like a plus sign, it was noticeably different than all the others, and the only other ship close to their size. If the Councilors had called upon Shepard to aid them…they must be in serious trouble.

"Sire, what are your orders?"

He turned, trading stares with each of his crew. He already knew exactly what he wanted to do, no hesitation crossing his mind. He looked back at the Ascension.

"Prepare a Phantom and gather the troops. We're going in."

* * *

"Alright Joker, we're in," Shepard said over comms, adjusting her helmet.

"Roger that. Good luck Commander." Joker said, radio going silent.

Garrus coughed quietly beside her, his visor dimly lighting his face up in the dark hanger bay. "Yeah, looks like we might be running late."

The hanger was littered with the bodies of crew members and soldiers alike, all killed by Geth weaponry. Some still wore faces of surprise, expressions frozen since the moment of death. Combined with the failing lights flickering around them, and the scene was pretty grisly.

"This is awful…" Liara said beside her, hand covering her mouth.

"I know, but we have to push on," Shepard said, spotting a door forced open close by. "Let's just get to the Councilors ok?"

She walked cautiously, stepping over the multitude of bodies and debris littering the ground. Her armored boots echoed on the metal floor, the sounds of her squad's footsteps right behind her. They reached the other side without any nasty surprises jumping out at them. Shepard stopped by the doorway, cocking her shotgun. Taking a breath, she rounded the corner swiftly, gun raised. Garrus came out a second later, covering her rear with his rifle.

The walkway was quiet, barren of any signs of fighting. The Geth mustn't have encountered any resistance here, otherwise the halls would probably look a lot more like the hanger bay. Shepard grunted and lowered her gun. "Clear."

"Yeah, all clear this side," Garrus said quietly, acting more like a professional than his usual jokester self.

Liara came around the corner next, her automatic pistol gripped tightly in her hand. Liara hadn't experienced as much combat at the rest of them, but she was an accomplished biotic. More so than Kaiden or even Shepard herself, Liara was deadly with her abilities. She didn't need a gun to kill someone, and that was why Shepard had picked her. After all, the Geth couldn't use biotics, which gave them a massive advantage.

"I just don't understand..." She said slowly, blue eyes looking around thoughtfully. "Why would the Geth attack now?"

"Who knows Liara, I don't tend to question the enemy," Shepard replied, beginning to walk down the corridor. If memory served, they would eventually reach the bridge if they followed this path. Surely, if the Councilors were anywhere, it was on the bridge.

"But it doesn't make sense." She persisted, following close behind. "Why attack now? What were they hoping to gain?"

"Well, you might have noticed the massive ship they had." Garrus said, his rifle still raised. "I don't know about you, but I think we're lucky our new friends were here. Otherwise…"

"Otherwise the Geth could have just destroyed the fleet." Shepard finished. "It doesn't really matter why they're doing anything. All that matters is we stop them."

"But Shepard-"

Shepard stopped, turning around to face her. "Focus on the mission Liara. One thing at the time, we have to stay focused. I mean, it's not really that hard is it?"

Liara frowned, before her eyes flickered to something behind her. "Shepard…"

"What did I just say?" Shepard said, feeling her temper rise.

Garrus coughed. "Shepard-"

"Oh, you want to start now too?"

"Shepard behind you."

She heard the robotic beeping before she saw it, whirling around as the Geth began to open fire. Its camouflage shimmered and failed as it shot, revealing the sleek black armor as well as the single bright eye atop its head. In its hands it held a Geth rifle, which fired accurate shards of heated metal at her.

Shepard's barrier flared from the impact, her biotics saving her life. With a roar she charged into the Geth, the shockwave knocking the creature a good few meters before it hit the ground with a loud scrape. Shepard aimed her gun and fired, spraying the Geth with multiple rounds. Geth were typically fragile, so it only took one blast from her shotgun to finish it. She breathed heavily, still shocked from being ambushed.

"Maybe you should take your own advice, Commander," Garrus said, dangerously close to laughing.

"Not a word Garrus," Shepard said, stepping over the Geth and continuing down the halls.

She was sure that more Geth would come running, her gunshot and biotic blast very loud. Sure enough, they encountered pockets of Geth, Either on patrol or guarding certain sections. It didn't really matter, as a mix of biotics and bullets took care of all of them. Shepard's shotgun tore through them like paper, and her aggressive biotics brushed them aside.

Garrus was a lot more accurate, aiming for key weak spots and wasting no ammo doing so. Be prided himself on being a marksman and Shepard had to agree. She hadn't seen him miss a single shot yet. His rifle took Geth lives with a single shot, as opposed to the spray and pray Shepard liked to employ.

Liara took care of the stragglers, her biotics throwing them around like dolls. The Doctor had a mastery of Biotics that Shepard could only dream about. Balls of dark energy flung into crowds, exploding and taking out entire groups. Waves of energy knocked Geth aside with ease. She even provided additional shielding for the rest of them, all while still fighting with her handgun.

Shepard charged into a group of Geth, ducking as one shot its weapon and hit another by mistake. Her shotgun took off the head of one, before she whirled and smashed the butt of her gun into another, fracturing its chest armor and knocking it to the floor. She felt her barrier take damage as the other two shot at her. She turned swiftly, firing twice into the duo. They fell with little resistance.

"How much further?" Garrus asked, glancing around the hallway. "We must be getting close."

"If I remember correctly, there's an elevator around the next bend that should take us up to the bridge," Shepard said, cradling her gun. "Hopefully the Council is safe and sound up there, complaining about the service or something equally ridiculous."

Shepard walked around the next corner, and sure enough, they were greeted by a small service lift. The lighting wasn't on, and it didn't seem to have much power. She cursed, walking closer to get a better look. The lift itself looked like it should be working, but the control panel that operated it had been smashed up. The interface blurred and went static, the actual console riddled with bullet holes.

"Why would the Geth shoot up the lift?" Shepard growled.

Liara coughed. "Actually, if I had to guess it would have been the crew. This lift is the only way to the bridge, and without it, the Geth cannot access the Council easily."

"Makes sense," Shepard said slowly. "But that doesn't change the fact that we need to get up there. Ideas?"

"I could try and repair it…" Garrus muttered, clearly doubting the plan. "But if I do, nothing's going to stop the Geth from using it either."

"We'll deal with that if it pops up, but right now we need to see if the Council is safe." Shepard said. "Do it."

Garrus slung his rifle over his back, boots thudding on the ground as he stepped up to the control panel. He pulled the interface off bare handed, before beginning to fiddle with some wires. Shepard turned to face the way they'd come, shotgun raised as she kept a watchful eye on the corridor. They didn't want any nasty surprises again.

Liara watched the hallway too, though nowhere near as vigilant. Despite nearly having a century on Shepard in age, the Asari almost acted like a teenager at times. It was both an endearing and annoying quality, but Shepard found she could put up with it. Besides, Liara was a doctor, an archeologist. She hadn't really experienced heavy fighting until…well, Shepard rescued her back on Therum.

"Do you think the Sangheili are alright?" She asked suddenly. "I'm sure they didn't expect to jump into a battle when they got here."

"Neither did we." Shepard chuckled, looking over at her. "The fact they immediately jumped in and helped has erased what doubts I did have. They're good, I can feel it."

"Oh yes Shepard, because your feelings are always right." Garrus laughed behind them. "Like your feelings for me. I can't blame you, I'd want to date me too if I could."

Shepard turned around, her gun somewhat pointed in his direction. "Please, that face? Only a mother could love it Garrus."

"Ouch," Garrus said, amused. He placed the panel back on the console, which lit up mere seconds later. "I trust you don't want to join me on the elevator then? It'll be pretty lonely down here by yourself."

"…I let you get away with so much." Shepard growled, though she couldn't help but crack a smile.

Garrus chuckled as she stepped onto the lift, Liara behind her. "Oh right. Let me, of course."

"Just start the lift."

"Please?"

"You're welcome Garrus, now do it."

"Alright alright." He said, pressing a command into the console. The lift ascended up silently, with little to no resistance. The ride was pretty short, the bridge located near the front of the ship, in the middle. They came to a stop, a set of doors opening quickly when the lift had settled.

"Woah!" Shepard shouted when a blinding light flashed into her eyes. She immediately tried to shield herself from it, arm over her face. She heard the clicking of weapons getting ready to fire.

"Hold it!" A voice shouted, a familiar voice. A Turian voice.

The lights immediately faded as the flashlights were turned off, sticking out the end of assault class rifles. Shepard's vision took a little longer to return, colorful dots dancing around her eyes. She eventually managed to focus on the source of the voice, the Turian Councilor, as he walked toward them.

"Commander, well I can't say I'm not thrilled." He said, gesturing for them to join him. "You arrived just in time."

"Glad we could make it sir." She said, putting on a smile. The Council did tend to annoy her most of the time, but they weren't inherently trying to ruin her day. They were just doing their jobs. Even if that job seemed to be stopping Shepard from doing hers…

"Yes, could we please stop with the pleasantries and form a plan now?" The Salarian Councilor spoke out. Shepard stopped him and the Asari Councilor behind the wall of armed guards that had been aiming at the elevator.

"Yes, I would have been reluctant before." The Asari agreed. "But with the Commander, we may have a good chance of escape."

The Turian turned back to the other two. "True, but remember that the Geth are in control of the Ship. We could easily walk into an ambush."

Shepard coughed, gaining all three's attention. "Alright look, we cleared a path from the hanger bay on the way in. I'm not sure if it's entirely free from Geth, but it would be the best bet. I'll radio for the Normandy to come pick us up."

Shepard tuned her comms to the Normandy and was immediately greeted by Joker. "Hey Commander, did you find the Council? That's cool, I've just been dodging the entire Geth armada it feels like. So that's a thing."

"Joker, I need you to come swing by the Ascension, we're going to evacuate the ship."

"Uhh, sorry ma'am, but I can't come right away." He said, hesitating. "There's a lot of ships between us, and even more debris. The alien dudes are cleaning up, looks like the Geth have lost out here."

"Damn," Shepard grunted. "Just do it ok?"

"I'll try my best," Joker said, tuning out.

Shepard sighed, lowering her hand. Everyone had heard it, which meant that everyone knew they were stuck there for now. But it wasn't all bad. The Councilors had been smart picking their holdout position. The Bridge had plenty of natural cover, and the elevator was the only obvious route of entry in. The guard had shifted tables onto their sides, providing even more cover should an attack come that way.

That was when Shepard noticed the lift had moved since they'd arrived. It had made no noise, the doors gliding shut effortlessly. With all the commotion and trying to form a plan, she'd missed it. But the lift wouldn't just move.

Unless someone called it.

"Heads up guys, we've got company," Shepard said, gesturing to the door.

"On it Commander," Garrus said, effortlessly shifting into cover beside the guard.

Liara's eyes widened as she stepped back, moving to stand beside the Council. She could put up a barrier around them if she needed too. Shepard remained where she was, standing right in front of the lift. Her barrier was up, and her shotgun loaded. Whatever was inside that lift, was going to get shredded. She grimaced, taking aim as she waited for the door to open.

The next few seconds passed by in silence, the air tense. It felt heavy, as if one could breathe it in. Shepard took deep breaths, eyes narrowed as she waited for those doors to open. She gripped her gun tightly, fingers flexing along the trigger as she got ready.

She flinched when the doors slid open suddenly, alarmed at how damn silent they were. She recovered quickly, panning her gun from one side to the other. But nothing was inside. They couldn't be stealthed, she'd be able to see them this close. She blinked, lowering her gun in confusion. It was empty.

"What is this?" The Turian Councilor growled, moving out from behind the guard toward Shepard.

She heard a noise. The clinking of metal. It sounded hollow, almost as if some kind of pipe or tunnel with something inside it.

It suddenly clicked. Or a vent.

She looked up at the roof, multiple air vents above them. She caught sight of a bright flash inside one, identical to the eye of a Geth.

"Look out!" She yelled, rushing toward the Councilor.

And then all hell broke loose.


	7. Chapter 7

**Hey guys!**

 **Sorry this came so incredibly late. I've been unable to sit and write for quite awhile, so it's been near impossible to continue up until now. Things probably wont continue as smoothly as they used too, but I WILL keep writing the story. Just going to take awhile.**

 **Anyway, with that said, please read on and hope you enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter Seven

The Geth were everywhere. Their shiny, organic bodies crawled through the many vents within the bridge, pouring through the openings and creeping along the walls and ceiling. Shepard Immediately knew they would be outnumbered, the shapeless mass of Geth making it impossible to distinguish individuals. They clambered down to the ground, rising onto two legs and raising weapons. Others fell from the ceiling like grotesque bugs, their metal skin reminding her of a beetle shell. While they were entirely robotic, they looked organic in their movements and shapes.

Shouts of alarm and gunfire shook her out of her stupor. Around her the room had fallen into chaos, allies cut off from one another as guards and soldiers attempted to repel the invaders. The Geth had also opened fire, their strange weapons leaving sizzling gas trails in their wake.

Shepard whirled to find a Geth aiming a weapon right at her. With a fierce cry she charged, biotic energy swirling around her violently. She slammed into the machine, sending it and several others crashing into a heap, their single eyes producing sparks. She spun and fired point blank into another, her shotgun tearing through the Geth's thin armor. With a growl, she threw a biotic ball at another, forcefully pushing it off the soldier it had been about to execute.

She noticed both Garrus and Liara had remained by the Councils side, working as a team to keep the Geth back. Liara was using her incredible biotic powers to form a barrier, as well as lob balls of blue light, disintegrating any Geth they touched. Garrus was using his sharpshooter skills. Every time he fired his rifle, another Geth fell. Bodies were beginning to pile around them, making it even more difficult for the Geth to reach them.

But slowly, they were gaining ground. As soon as one Geth fell, another would take its place. Many of the bridge staff and soldiers were either down or were in no position to aid the Council. Shepard let out a growl of frustration, firing into the crowds of Geth. Her weapon tore through them like paper, but again it didn't make a dent. She noticed that most of the Geth seemed determined to reach the Council, ignoring her unless she got in the way.

" _Well,"_ She thought. _"I'd better get in the way."_

She charged, her energy knocking the Geth to the sides. She tore down the middle of their ranks, skidding to a stop in front of Liara's barrier. The Geth who had been closest got thrown to the sides of the room, their bodies dented and broken from the force. Others seemed unaffected and continued their advance. They now took aim at Shepard, who was directly in their path.

"Keep the Barrier up!" She shouted to Liara. Liara looked alarmed but nodded grimly.

Garrus didn't accept the order nearly as well. "Shepard don't be a fool! Get in here, we have to hunker down-"

"We don't have that Luxury!" She shot back, firing into the crowds. The Geth advanced, despite the injuries she inflicted. Shepard could feel her frustration increasing, and with another fierce yell she sent out a shockwave. The Geth struggled to move closer, the wave knocking many of them into each other's paths.

Shepard heard her gun sizzle from overheating. With a snarl she threw it aside, pulling out her pistol and firing at the enemy. The Geth recovered quickly from the shockwave and continued their advance. Some now ran at her, sensing weakness.

She ducked a swipe from one, smashing the hilt of her gun into its face. The metal shattered, it's eye blinking as it fell to the ground. Another made a grab for her, but with a biotic fueled push, it was flung across the room.

She heard a cry of alarm from behind her. Whirling around, she noticed the Geth had begun scurrying along the ceiling in an effort to get behind her. Garrus fired at them, machines dropping like flies. But there were so many. Too many.

She raised her gun and began to fire when a white hot pain radiated from her side. She yelled, sinking to one knee. Turning her head, she blasted the Geth who had shot her and sent its broken body flying. She groaned, looking down at her injury. The bullet had grazed through her armor, passing through under the skin. Why hadn't her barrier stopped it? Had she been recharging it? _"You idiot Shepard. Keep your head in the fight!"_

She struggled to her feet, but more Geth were upon her. She felt a sharp pain as the back of a rifle whacked her across the jaw, knocking her down again. She felt claw-like fingers wrap around her throat and squeeze. She tried to gasp for air, but none came.

The Geth pulled her up and off the ground, holding her up with one strong arm. It seemed curious, eye making slight movements is it watched her choke. Snarling, she fought to pry the Geth's hand away, but its grip was like a vice. The corners of her vision were turning black, and she was finding it hard to think. She suddenly realized she might actually die.

A round tore through the Geth's head, causing it to crumble and lose its grip.

"Garrus!" She heard Liara shout. Another clawed hand, a much friendlier one, grabbed her and pulled her up. With his free hand, Garrus fired into the Geth swarm, each shot finding their target. The Turian's shield flickered from the fire he was taking, but he looked determined.

"You damn fool Shepard." He growled, struggling to pull her backward, toward Liara's barrier.

She couldn't reply even if she wanted too, her throat still felt constricted. She could only watch as Garrus single-handedly attempted to stop the Geth. But even for his skill, there were far too many.

She heard him hiss in pain as his shoulder began to trickle blue blood. His shields failing, his armor could barely hold up to the incoming fire they both were receiving. Another round grazed his neck, adding to his injuries. He was slowing down, arm shaking as he struggled to pull her weight as well as his own.

Shepard felt a familiar spark of anger. Killing her was one thing, but her friend? That was something she couldn't let happen. Power surging through her limbs, she pushed herself away from Garrus. He yelled out something, but she didn't pay attention. She focused on the power she felt, forcing it toward her hands. They glowed brightly, fiercely. Many Geth were now paying attention to her again, and she felt armor give way to rounds. She felt her body burn in protest to the damage she was taking, but she didn't care. Almost ready.

With a final cry, she let the energy lose. The bridge exploded with biotic power, throwing Geth around like ragdolls. Shepard was thrown off her feet, pushed even further away from her allies. She saw Garrus fall to the ground, rolling back into the safety of the barrier. She skidded to a stop, thumping against a wall.

Many Geth had been damaged beyond repair. The room was lined with the bodies of them, sparking and flickering. Many, however, had only been mildly inconvenienced by the explosion. Bodies dented, limbs missing, the Geth still got to their feet and stomped toward her.

She tried to lift her arm, but her body ignored her. She had used all of her energy in her final attack, and now it had given up on her. She snarled, eyes locked onto the Geth closest to her. It stopped before her, doing the same head tilts and movements as the one that choked her. She saw her pistol right next to her hand, but her fingers made no move to grab it.

The Geth, seemingly studying her enough, raised its own weapon in the direction of her head. She could see the rest moving toward the Council, Garrus's gun the only thing slowing them down. The Geth chirped as if saying one last thing before putting her down.

"Shepard!" She heard both Garrus and Liara shout, but they sounded distant. She swore she heard explosions, felt the ground rock. But none of that mattered. She stared into the barrel of the gun pointed at her, screaming inside for her body to do something.

" _Dammit Shepard! Fight! Fight!"_

And suddenly, the Geth was no longer pointing at her.

It shrill cry caused the others to turn. It wriggled its legs as it tried to touch the ground, and yet it just hovered. Its hands came up to grab at something around its neck, and yet nothing was there. Then, Shepard saw a flicker of movement, as if her eyes were playing tricks.

The sound of crushing metal came next. The Geth's neck collapsed in an instant before it was dropped to the floor like a broken toy. One of the Geth fired at open air. Processing better eye sight, it saw what she hadn't. The air flickered blue from where the round hit, and a being seemed to appear out of thin air. Large, armored, it was the most imposing figure in the room. And immediately recognizable.

A Sangheili. And not just any Sangheili, but one with Golden Armor.

He roared, the sound more akin to a wild beast than anything civilized. Both his wrists flicked, and two deadly looking blades appeared in his hands. The energy swords sizzled the air around them, causing vapor to follow the blades movements. The Geth, unimpressed by the theatrics, opened fire.

Thel charged into their ranks, ignoring the damage he was taking. He spun in wide arcs, both blades slicing through Geth like air. The room lit up, both from the gunfire and molten metal that was quickly covering the floor. The Sangheili seemed to revel in his carnage, more war cries following as he whittled down the Geth's numbers. His display made it seem as if he was using more than two swords. Then Shepard realized, he wasn't alone.

His bold display may have been bravado, but it had also let more of his warriors inside. She spotted the large hole burnt out the side of the Bridge, their entry point. She watched as invisible hands guided swords into their enemies, making the swords look like they wielded themselves. The carnage was absolute, and yet the Geth continued to fire at the Fleetmaster, either unaware of the other Sangheili or not caring. Thel's shield had given out, and his purple blood was dripping down his arms and legs. But this seemed to make him more aggressive, as if the pain only strengthened him. With one last flourish, his sword sliced a Geth up the middle, in half. The two sides fell to the ground, and there was silence.

The other warriors appeared out of their cloaking, all large but not quite as big as their leader. Thel was the only one to deactivate his swords, the rest still looking at the Geth corpses as if they might rise again. Shepard let out a breath she didn't realize she'd been holding. What had seemed like certain defeat had instead become a victory. Her body strung, reminding her of the bullet holes and damage she had sustained.

She groaned and managed to flip herself onto her back. The movement had been agony, but she was proud of herself for doing it. A large, ugly face filled her view.

"You are injured." Thel noted bluntly, mandibles flexing in strange ways as he talked.

She chuckled, which in turn caused her to wince. "Nothing I haven't had before…I'll be fine, just need time to rest I think."

He nodded, before stepping away from her and heading toward the Council. Both Liara and Garrus remained by their side. Liara looked tired, but Garrus was eyeing Thel with mistrust. Shepard noted his still had a finger on the trigger of his weapon.

Thel stopped before them, towering above them. He looked down at each one, before speaking directly to Liara. "These are your Hierarchs yes?"

She nodded weakly. "Putting it mildly, but yes. They are our leaders."

"Translate for me." He said softly, before turning a sharp eye to the Councilors. "Leaders of the Citadel. I am the Fleet master of the Fleet of Particular Justice. I have come to aid you in the war against the Ancient Machines that would destroy us all. I am called Thel."

Liara quickly repeated his words for the Councilors to hear. For a moment, there was silence. Then…

"How do we know what your real intentions are?" The Turian Councilor said with narrowed eyes. "That ship out there could destroy the rest of our fleet, why should we trust your word?"

Liara repeated it back to Thel. His eyes narrowed. "I could annihilate your ships at a moment's notice, Councilor. Yet I have not. Is this not reason enough to consider my word genuine."

The Councilor growled. "Was that a threat?"

The Asari Councilor threw her hands up, silencing the Turian. "Enough, he has a point. They have not attacked us."

She turned to Thel. "You saved our lives, I assume you wouldn't have if your offer was not genuine."

"No," Thel said. "I came to save the life of the Human Commander, however, had I known your lives were in danger I may not have acted at all."

There was a pause after that. Shepard groaned, shakily pushing herself to sit upright. The Sangheili were great fighters but seemed to lack diplomacy skills. Or maybe Thel was just especially blunt. Regardless, she needed to stop this from turning into more violence.

The Turian gestured to the others. "See? He did not do this on our behalf, so why should we even consider this?"

"And why should he?" The Salarian Councilor countered, speaking up. "He does not know who we are or what we do. Only what Shepard had told him."

The Turian was looking at the other two with wide eyes. The Salarian turned back to Thel. "Regardless, you wish no war between us?"

"I do not," Thel said. "I encountered your Shepard on the fringes of our space, her ship was damaged. I brought her here as a sign of co-operation, and to fight against the Ancient Machines that plague you."

"What exactly are these Ancient Machines you speak of? The Geth?" The Salarian asked.

Thel shook his head. "No, I believe you call them Reapers."

The Council exchanged looks. When Shepard had brought the subject up, she'd been all but laughed at, the galaxy believing the reapers to be nothing but boogie men from space. But with Thel's words, they seemed uncertain. This could be her chance to convince them.

"Councilors…" She said, hissing as she struggled to her feet. "Thel's people know of the Reapers. They've been waiting for the day they return. It's part of their culture."

"You mean like a religion?" The Turian rectified, tone suggesting that it was a belief and nothing more. Shepard felt irritation threatening to rise.

"No. They know the real threat. They would be a big ally to have. Even if it's just to stop Saran and his Geth." She explained, trying to play to their wants.

They all exchanged looks again. After a moments silence, the Asari turned back to them all. "We will need to continue this discussion, truly form this alliance. But we cannot do it here. We will meet on the Citadel to confer."

* * *

Thel gazed across the Presidium grounds. Between the green grass and breeze on the wind, he was amazed at just how real this simulation seemed to be. The Sangheili processed large space stations too, but they were much more ceremonial in design. As opposed to the grand architecture his people used in building, this had a much more natural feel. He honestly liked it.

"Sire, are we really going to join these aliens?" One of his guards asked. Thel had brought two of his warriors onto the station, partly incase fighting broke out, but also to signify his power.

"No." He replied quietly. "We cannot officially forge a true alliance without the words of the Supreme Commander, but we can call a truce. Besides, I would never accept to place our kind under the boot of another. We've dealt with that before…"

"Will the aliens accept that?" The other guard asked.

Before he could think of his response, the door before them opened. A bruised but very alive Shepard stepped out, waving them in. "They're ready, finally. Just don't say anything stupid and we should be good to go."

"What you may find 'stupid' may have virtue to me," Thel responded. "As long as they accept our terms, there will be peace."

Shepard frowned, but she didn't argue the point further. She stepped aside to let him into the Council Chambers. Inside, the Councilors stood atop pedestals at the rear of the room, above everyone else. Thel found this distasteful. A true leader stood among their people, not above them.

Around the room, other beings of importance had gathered. He heard many muttered voices, all eyes on him and his guard. With the variety of aliens he saw in this room, he was surprised they were reacting at all. He himself was holding his reaction in check. Besides the Jiralhanae, his people had never met beings from other worlds. Now it seemed he was meeting all of them.

"This session has begun." The Asari Councilor spoke, earning silence from the rest of the room. She looked down at Thel. "Step forward Fleet master, and stand on the pedestal before you."

He was ready to protest, both on the grounds of holding his own authority and to remain by his guard, but he remembered Shepard's words. Letting out a breath, he stepped onto the pedestal. He hid his surprise as it rose, just lower than the Councilors.

"Today's session brings the topic of a new alien species joining the council." The Salarian spoke, voice echoing through the hall. "Normally these proceedings would take months to happen, but these are desperate times. We are at war, and the enemy has proven they can attack us at the heart of our government."

The Asari continued. "The Fleet master and his crew thwarted the Geth's attack, as well as displayed bravery and honor in the defense of the Council. Clearly, they have displayed they have the ideals that the Council seeks out when finding new peoples to join."

The crowds around them spoke in agreement. Thel couldn't understand them but he knew the difference between agreeing sounds and otherwise. He felt a mandible twitch in agitation.

"It seems the people agree, but we still need to vote." The Asari finished, gesturing to the others to speak their piece.

The Salarian started. "These Sangheili have shown that they understand the greater threat we all face, and seem to agree with our own morals and ideals. I vote yes."

The Turian went next. "I have my reservations. These aliens are more dangerous than any that have come before. Their weapons and technology are utterly different to anything the Council knows off, and they defy known science. Still, even I have to agree that they saved us in a time of need. I reluctantly…vote yes.

The Asari nodded, going last. "Then it seems we have a unanimous agreement. As of today, The Sangheili are of the Citadel Council. An embassy will open, and they will be able to perform trade as well as move freely through Council space. What say you, Thel Vadam? Do you agree with these terms?"

Finally allowed to speak for himself, Thel didn't need to say much.

"No, I reject this offer."

The crowd erupted into shouting. The Councilors had to quell the noise before they could continue. They seemed stunned, angry and shaken. The Asari was the first to speak.

"I don't understand. Did you not say you wished to join us?"

"I never uttered those words," Thel said calmly, ignoring his own anger. "I spoke of a formal alliance, but never did I say I wished to serve you."

"Those are the same things, are they not?" The Salarian countered.

He shook his head. "They are not. While I am happy to offer my ship and crew to fighting your enemy, it is only because they are my enemy too. I have no desire to become part of your collective."

His last word seemed to anger the Turian, who visibly bristled. "You wanted peace, alien. These are the terms. Species who do not join the Council are not allowed to move through our space or interact with others. Why some have even been quarantined to their home worlds."

"I invite you to try, Councilor," Thel growled, his mask of patience cracking. "My people have known the suffering of living under others. And we will never do so again. If you dare to force your law upon us, I guarantee it will be the last decision you ever make."

The Turian shot to his feet. "Then it IS war you seek? How very foolish of you."

"Enough!" The Asari shouted. Thel got the impression she rarely had to do so, because the room quietened down again. Even her fellow Councilors stopped speaking. She turned her gaze back to Thel, and in that moment, Thel realized she was more ancient than she appeared.

"Many species have joined the Council and prospered." She said. "Many have refused and suffered for it, even in recent history. We do not seek to rule your people with an iron fist, but through co-operation and guidance."

Thel kept his gaze on hers, even though he now understood that she was much older and wiser than he could ever be. "We will never serve under another. It is what has shaped us as a people. I offered a hand in truce so that we could destroy the mutual enemy we share. That is all I offered, nothing more. I will not be bullied or swayed on this point."

Before she could get her say in, he continued. "If you do not wish for our aid, I will leave you to your own. The Sangheili will continue to prepare for the Ancient Machines without you, and should the time come when they begin to cleanse the cosmos, you will be on your own."

"Those are nothing but children stories. Myths."

"Are you sure enough in your belief to take that chance, Councilor?"

She hesitated. It was subtle, but he saw it. She knew. She knew there was a chance he might be right, even if she didn't personally believe it. She was far too wise to consider it never happening, and he knew it.

"You can't be seriously considering this." The Turian hissed at her.

The Salarian looked considerate, much less angry than the others. "His offer is sound. And it would be better not to have two enemies wanting war with us. The Geth are already hostile."

"I agree." The Asari said reluctantly. "Right now, his offer is the middle ground we need."

They both looked at the Turian, who was looking at them both with an angry glare.

"This is a mistake…" He growled but offered no more resistance.

"Very well." The Asari said, turning to look back down at Thel. "We will accept your offer of a truce, on the condition that when the time comes, your people will either join the Council or declare yourselves separate."

It was his turn to hesitate now. The last part of her statement sounded like a trap, something he should again just refuse. And yet…what choice did he have? If he argued further, things might not end as well as he hoped. His warriors were powerful, but few. And the Councilors had warriors of their own. His chances of fighting his way out were slim, and he couldn't take that chance.

He noticed the subtle smile the Asari was wearing. She knew as well that he was caught in a hard place. She had played her part well.

With a sigh, he finally responded. "Very well. I accept these terms, and will come to the Council with my people's decision after this fight is over."

Her smile grew slightly, And Thel hoped that he was making the right decision.


End file.
